While New Jersey Nursing Home Staff Vaccination Lags, Gov. Murphy Touts State's Overall Rates
TRENTON, N.J. (CBS/AP) -- New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy says the Garden State is among a number of states with the best vaccination rates in the United States.
"New Jersey ranks, as you can see, 10th in total doses administered per 100,000 residents, eighth in percentage of all adults with at least one dose, eighth in percent of our adult population who are now fully vaccinated," Murphy said. "We are not patting ourselves on the back. This is a journey that is not fully over yet. Please know that."
Just over half of the staff at New Jersey's long-term care facilities have gotten COVID-19 vaccinations, compared with 84% of residents, the state's top health official said Wednesday.
Health Commissioner Judy Persichilli said during a news conference with Murphy in Trenton that about 56% of the staff at the state's almost 400 nursing homes and long-term care facilities have gotten vaccinated, she said.
Persichilli said some staff members from such facilities come from ethnic groups in which concerns have been raised over vaccines, and a number of younger staffers have also gotten misleading information online that wrongly suggested certain vaccines could impact fertility.
"We have a lot of education to do," she said. "I think we will get those percentages up. it's imperative that we do."
In an effort to encourage more people to get vaccinated, the state is launching a contest, asking participants to submit a video explaining why they got the shot.
(© Copyright 2021 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
