Governor Phil Murphy

TRANSCRIPT: March 2nd, 2020 Coronavirus Briefing

03/2/2020

 

Governor Murphy: As the team assembles, most importantly, apologies for being late, and we'll explain why in a minute. But good afternoon, everyone. Come on up here and join us guys. We have a space. I'm joined today by a cavalcade of folks from our team, Commissioner of Health, Judy Persichilli, to my right; State Infectious Disease Epidemiology Program Coordinator, Dr. Lisa McHugh; we'll hear from her. Is Chris with us? Chris Neuwirth? Chris is with us. What's your actual title?

DOH Assistant Commissioner Chris Neuwirth:. So together, we would like to reassure residents of our efforts to protect them and our state giving -- given the growing and rightful concern regarding the corona virus and the COVID-19 illness it cause us. First, to be clear, we currently have no confirmed cases of Corona virus, or COVID-19 in New Jersey. Based on Centers for Disease Control standards, anyone with pneumonia requiring hospitalization, with no other alternate explanatory diagnosis, like the flu, will undergo precautionary testing for the coronavirus. We have just been informed of one person who will be tested and Commissioner, Persichilli will speak to that instance. But to be clear, again, as of now none of the individuals tested under the standard have been positive for coronavirus. The risk to the average American is low, that is a welcome relief but we are not allowing ourselves to sit back in anyway, we are committed to keeping state government in an active and engaged position to respond properly and swiftly to any future individuals who meet the CDC guidelines for coronavirus testing. This is a multi-level and whole of government effort; it includes our hospitals, our schools, and the personnel at our ports and airports. And others up here with me will speak to this, and our preparedness also includes our residents. We remain in close contact with our Federal partners at the CDC and other agencies. In fact, several of us were in the White House on Friday. I spoke to Vice President, Pence on Friday evening. I just participated and many of us were with me, in a video conference with the Vice President, Federal Health & Human Services Secretary, Alex Azar, White House staff, and governors from across the nation to discuss our national preparedness and that's the reason why we're a little bit late, that call went on a little bit longer than we had expected. I was proud as I was on Friday to be able to speak with the Vice President and his team just now, and to once again engage directly in a dialogue to ensure that our needs as States remained front of mind. As I mentioned, we had a very constructive open engagements towards the end of the week, both in the White House on Friday and on the phone Friday night, and the Vice President complimented our state's aggressive and proactive stance. Tomorrow I will convene a series of calls with stakeholders across our state to update them and our preparedness efforts and to ensure we are all working from the same playbook. One call will be with school superintendents and the leaders of our colleges and universities, the second will be with representatives of our business community, and the third will be with local and county officials. Of course, we are in the midst in a bears repeating of cold and flu season and residents with respiratory ailments are more likely to be suffering from a cold or flu, and not coronavirus. As of this moment, as I mentioned earlier, the overall risk of coronavirus is low. The Department of Health is maintaining the coronavirus information page on it's website, which can be found by visiting nj.gov/health, that's nj.gov/health. And the state's toll-free public hotline for any questions that residents may have also remains in service, and that number is 1-800-222-1222. 1-800-222-1222. We ask that any residents with questions or concerns make those, either the website of the phone number their first stops. We are working closely with officials at the Port Authority, which operates Newark Liberty International Airport to ensure that any passengers who may have been exposed to Corona virus are properly screened, so they do not pose a threat to the public at large. Newark Liberty remains one of the nation's 11 airports through which all flights originating in China will land and they are taking their responsibility to securing public health with the utmost seriousness. As you'll likely hear from John in a few moments, the direct flights have stopped. I think when we started this, there were 29 a day. There are now none, but we're still -- the folks are still screening for passengers who have head China in their travels and are coming in through a different port. We also recognize that the threat of the coronavirus is not just to public health but to our economy as well. The global data is showing us this in very real terms. This is another reason why we will remain fiscally responsible to ensure that New Jersey's financial footing remains sound and based on sound practices, and so we have resources available through both our surplus and the rainy day fund to protect against any economic emergency. To residents, the surest way you could protect yourself and your loved ones and friends is to wash your hands frequently with soap and water, to be smart and cover your cough or sneeze, not with your hand but in your sleeve, and to avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. And if you feel under the weather, take a day off from work or school and check-in with your doctor or a local healthcare provider, as we said it is most likely a cold or seasonal flu and not the coronavirus. Only those who meet the CDC's criteria will have specimens tested at the state public health and environmental laboratories which received Federal approval late last week to begin coronavirus testing. All of us up here keep safeguarding the public's health as one of our highest priorities. We take the health and wellness of our 9 million fellow New Jerseyan's as seriously, as we take the health of our families and ourselves. My message to you is this, "We've been at this for weeks, and we are prepared, and we are staying vigilant." A friend of mine had a phrase that I latched on to; it is "No time to panic, but it is time to be prepared." I've said for weeks that state of readiness has been a whole of government approach, and it will continue to be that way and we have your backs. With that, I'd like to invite Health Commissioner, Judy Persichilli to come on to the podium and give us a few words from her perspective. Thank you, Judy.

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: Thank you, Governor. Good afternoon. Governor Murphy, fellow cabinet member. The Department of Health continues to monitor this rapidly evolving and expanding situation. Cases continue to rise across the globe, and in the United States. Globally, there are more than 87,000 cases, and more than 90 cases in the United States. So far New Jersey, eight people have tested negative for novel coronavirus. We've just recently have one individual under investigation, we expect specimens to be delivered sometime later today, and that person will be tested -- that individual is not hospitalized, and at this point is a febrile, and more than likely and we're hoping that that will be a negative test. Although this novel virus is understandably a cause for concern, it is important for New Jersey residents to know that the risk to the general public is still low. We are working closely with the CDC and our public health and healthcare partners to ensure our preparedness levels for this novel virus. At the Department of Health, we responded immediately, and on January 24 we created an internal crisis management team that has met daily since January 24. To help inform the public in late January, we opened a coronavirus hotline. The call center has answered more than 850 calls from the public. They operate 24/7 at 1-800-222-1222 and can accommodate callers in multiple languages. In early February, Governor Murphy signed an executive order establishing a coronavirus task force to coordinate all state efforts to prepare for and respond to the public health hazard posed by this virus. This is a whole of government approach, and at this point we meet weekly. The department has held a series of conference calls with local health departments, and our hospital partners to review the importance of planning for this crisis. The department is working closely with our sister agencies; given the potential impact on schools, we have met with the Department of Education and we are creating a specific subcommittee dedicated to school emergency preparedness. As you know, hospitals are on the front-line of this response. We've met with the hospitals and the New Jersey Hospital Association to go over emergency preparedness and resiliency, and we are actively working with the New Jersey Hospital Association and the hospitals directly to ensure they have sufficient plans in place to prepare for and respond to a surge of ill patients or a supply chain disruption. The department has surveyed the capacity at our hospitals, and there are currently more than 700 negative pressure isolation rooms throughout the state, available full for patients with novel coronavirus symptoms. These rooms' also known as airborne infection isolation rooms provide the necessary protections to prevent contamination throughout the hospital. The New Jersey Department of Health works with hospitals and local health departments through all of our respiratory virus and flu season, and on hundreds of diseases and outbreaks that we are prepared to handle day-in and day-out. It is important to note, the CDC has broadened the definition of persons under investigation to include not only individuals who have history of travel to areas with COVID transmission, identified by the CDC as those countries with a level two or higher travel advisory, but also includes hospitalized patients who come in with a pneumonia in which a cause is not readily identified. With this change, hospitals will be evaluating many more individuals. We are likely going to be performing more testing, as well as confirming more cases. I also want to take this time to remind everyone that the flu continues to be a public health concern right now in our state. There is currently high flu activity state-wide and there had been more than 5,000 cases of flu and two flu-related child deaths. The same precautions that you take for the flu are exactly what you should be doing to protect yourself from the coronavirus. Use respiratory etiquette; covering coughs and sneezes with a tissue or sleeve, wash your hands often during the day with soap and water for 20 seconds, and stay at home if you are sick. If you have symptoms, you need to visit a doctor's office or an urgent care and emergency room, and you are able call first and tell them why you are coming. I encourage the public to visit our website nj.gov/health for information on novel coronavirus. The website has factsheets, answers to frequently asked questions, travel advisories and guidance for businesses, universities, schools, and healthcare providers. New Jersey continues to work very closely with the CDC and local health partners to monitor the situation. We understand that the public is concerned but I want to assure you that we are taking all steps available to protect the residents of New Jersey. As this situation evolves, things will change quickly, and we will continue to keep you informed. Thank you.

Governor Murphy: Well said. Thank you, Judy. We're going to keep things moving along here because again, I apologize for starting late. Please help me welcome Dr. Lisa McHugh who's the Infectious Disease Epidemiology Program Coordinator. Doc, come on down.

 

State Infectious Disease Epidemiology Program Coordinator, Dr. Lisa McHugh: Thank you, Governor. So first, I just want to give a brief update of where we stand to date. So, in addition to several new cases that have been reported in states predominantly on the West Coast, including California, Oregon and Washington State, there have been many recent additions this weekend; two individuals reporting confirmed cases including New York City, Florida and Rhode Island. So some of these cases have had direct travel to areas with known COVID transmission, while others appear to potentially have no linkages to those areas, indicating the likely potential of community transmission of the virus in these particular areas. So another quite common question that we get is, do we know more about the clinical illness? I'm sure you've heard many of us say that there is a lot that's still unknown, and we are still learning about this virus. But as new cases are being reported to us, we are garnering new information. Overall, the illness does appear to have a very wide range of severity, from cases with very mild illness, similar to the common cold, which does appear to be the majority of cases that are occurring to those with more severe illness requiring hospitalization. Those with the most severe presentations have been in adults predominantly with underlying health conditions. Worldwide, thankfully, there have been very few cases reported in children, and of those reported -- of those illnesses in children they tend to have been mild. Many are asking what New Jersey is doing to identify COVID in the state? And we are closely following guidance published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the identification and testing of potential cases. Based on the growing number of cases that have been reported, late last week CDC modified the criteria has been -- has already been discussed, which are evaluating these people for testing. Around the same time, we also learn that the state public health laboratory had the ability to begin testing for COVID. As I mentioned, like all other states we are using this new criteria provided by CDC to evaluate individuals. It's important to remember that these are screening criteria, useful in identifying persons that require additional evaluation; these are not diagnostic criteria for COVID-19. Patients meeting the surveillance criteria might have many other conditions including influenza, other respiratory virus, and bacterial infections. We're encouraging healthcare providers to conduct a thorough clinical evaluation early in the course of their hospitalization to help us rollout some of these more common infections and other causes of lower respiratory tract disease. The new CDC criteria that we're now using is very broad, and it doesn't include not only individuals who have a travel history to areas with COVID transmission, as identified by CDC as those countries with a Level-2 or higher travel advisory, but also includes individuals hospitalized for pneumonia in which a cause is not readily identifiable. This broad approach means that we are -- will have more individuals eligible for testing, but it also does not mean that every one of these individuals will be tested. Commonly, community-acquired pneumonia cases requiring hospitalization are fairly common and occur very frequently, and often there is not a known cause for their illnesses. The New Jersey Department of Health Communicable Disease service staff is using information that we know about COVID, both it's epidemiologic and clinical criteria to determine who best fits this criteria for testing, especially in that group that does not have identified travel risk factors. As been previously mentioned, we've had three individuals who've been approved for testing over the weekend and have all been found to be negative, and our team continues to work with healthcare providers on evaluating and approving individuals that have been reported to us. With no confirmed cases in New Jersey, the risk remains low to the general population, but is slightly higher for those individuals who may have traveled to some of these areas where COVID transmission is occurring. And even though there are no cases, and the number of detections remains small, as we begin to do this additional testing, it does remain likely that we may identify cases in the near future. And I know that individuals are concerned about COVID but I want to assure you that all individuals at all levels of state and local government, as well as the healthcare provider community in our state have been preparing for COVID-19, and should we identify a case or several cases, we are ready to respond and to begin to take necessary public health actions.
I know all of this may sound like some bad news but the good news is that, we don't have any cases in New Jersey, and there are actions and preparations that you can take to begin to keep you, your families, and your communities safe. Schools and businesses should be preparing for ill students and staff, and we suggest that you review guidance materials that are on the CDC and NJDOH website on how you can best prepare your communities. As the Commissioner had mentioned, individuals are recommended to take just key prevention for all illnesses, frequent hand-washing, avoid touching your face, covering coughs and sneezes in a tissue or your elbow, and stay home from school or work if you're sick, and if you are sick, avoid crowded public places. If you do become sick, monitor your symptoms at home by taking your temperature and contact your healthcare provider for medical advice. They can help you determine if it's necessary for you to be evaluated in a healthcare setting and give you steps that you might take to help protect others in that healthcare setting, should you need to be evaluated. My colleague in a few will provide some additional details and steps on what additional steps you might do to prepare, and I just want to -- I just want to illustrate one additional thing in which we are not recommending that the average individual do, and that is stock-up on masks. CDC is not recommending the routine use of face-masks or respiratory respirators outside of the workplace setting, meaning in the community; these are reserved for our healthcare providers. Most often, the spread of respiratory viruses from person-to-person happens among close contacts, meaning about within six feet, and with prolonged contact. CDC recommends that everyday preventive measures that I've just outlined is what you should be following. You should only be wearing a mask if a healthcare professional recommends it, and this may happen when an individual is sick and is being evaluated in the healthcare setting, and again, this is to help protect others from getting infected from that individual that is ill. Thank you.

Governor Murphy: Thank you, Lisa. Lisa mentioned testing, as did Judy, as did I; and I glossed over a point before Chris comes up. And I mentioned passingly in my remarks that we had gotten the approval to test in New Jersey as of late last week; that's a big deal for us. So I think, Judy, our turnaround release or Chris, our turnaround now is something that looks like eight hours as opposed to having to send the swath down to Atlanta. If we get a positive test, we will still send it down to Atlanta to triple-check but negative tests, we're able to -- we're able to get our arms around much more quickly. So with that, please help me welcome Assistant Commissioner, Department of Health, Chris Neuwirth. Chris?

DOH Assistant Commissioner Chris Neuwirth: Thank you. Good afternoon. The Department of Health continues to work closely with Federal, State and local partners to ensure all COVID-19 preparedness and response activities are happening -- that are happening here in New Jersey are aligned, organized and fully coordinated. Emergency management and state health officials, including members of the governor's task force and the department's crisis management team remain in constant contact with our colleagues at the US Department of Health & Human Services, and the CDC to identify, develop and share planning resources for healthcare facilities, K-12 schools, institutions of higher education, and of course, individuals and families. There are a number of preparedness activities that we encourage healthcare facilities, including hospitals and long-term care centers to implement immediately to mitigate against COVID-19 transmission, and to conserve limited medical resources. First, the CDC -- first, the CDC permits the limited reuse of N95 respirators for healthcare workers while treating cohorted patients, all with the same respiratory illness. A healthcare provider may continue to wear their own N95 mask while treating multiple patients with the same illness. Second, facility should consider using alternative respiratory protection devices such as air-purifying respirators and powered air-purifying respirators. These devices can provide the same or higher levels of protection as an N95 facemask, but are reusable and can be worn by healthcare providers for longer periods of time while treating patients. Third, healthcare facility should prioritize existing medical supplies, including N95 respirators for healthcare workers directly caring for individuals with communicable respiratory illnesses. Other healthcare workers not providing direct physical care may be able to complete their activities at safe distances from the patient that would not require them to wear the same level of personal protective equipment. Fourth, healthcare facilities are discouraged from disposing of expired N95 respirators. These expired facemasks can be used for education and training purposes, so that unexpired respirators are conserved. While these are only a few examples of the proactive measures healthcare facilities can take, we want to reassure the public that we're actively working with healthcare providers to ensure they have the latest technical guidance from the CDC. For our K-12 schools and institutions of higher education, we encourage all administrators to review their business continuity plans, identify opportunities to limit, reduce or reschedule mass gatherings, and identify opportunities for delivering academic materials remotely using various technological tools and resources. Individuals and families are reminded to plan for childcare arrangements if schools or daycares are temporarily closed. In addition, individuals should prepare their homes for telecommuting if your employer allows you to work from home. More so, we encourage individuals and families to remain connected with the latest information from the Department of Health by visiting nj.gov/health or calling 1-800-222-1222 if you have any questions. As the situation continues to evolve, The Department of Health will remain in close contact with our federal, state and local partners to ensure all preparedness and response activities are coordinated and that the latest CDC guidance is distributed in a timely and effective manner. Thank you.

Governor Murphy: Thanks, Chris. Thank you, Chris. And I promise never again to forget your title. So, Chris mentioned schools, and obviously that's a question that comes up a lot from parents and kids themselves, so please help me welcome the Commissioner of the Department of Education, Dr. Lamont Repollet.

Education Commissioner, Dr. Lamont Repollet: Thanks so much. Governor, Commissioner Persichilli, thank you for the work that you have done and continue to do marshaling every resource of state government to keep the public safe and informed of the latest developments regarding coronavirus. I would like to take this opportunity to remind educators, parents and the public at large of five things. Communication is vital; our County Offices of Education are a boots-on-the-ground. As questions emerge regarding appropriate coronavirus response and preparedness protocols for your district, please direct those questions to your County Office of Education. All county offices are directly in touch with me here in Trenton, the more we know about questions and circumstances faced by different parts of the state, the better information we have to share with our colleagues at the Department of Health, the better we can collaborate to disseminate factual, appropriate resources to our communities. Number two; school-specific guidance from the Department of Health is available. We provided guidance to all of our districts via our broadcast system on February 3. We encourage districts to continually monitor the Department of Health and the CDC's web pages. Existing policies and procedures reporting on home instruction; I would like to remind districts and the public of a few policies and procedures that should already be in place [that minor form 00:27:56] of communities coronavirus planning. On the DoE regulations; districts should have protocols in place for the provisions of home instruction in a home or out-of-school setting, either directly, through online services or through contract with another district for students with temporary or chronic health conditions. All districts are required to immediately report any communicable diseases that are identified, as reported on the Department of Health Regulations, whether confirmed or presumed by the phone -- by phone to the health officer of the jurisdiction which the school is located. Continued collaboration; as Commissioner Persichilli said, our team share a commitment to bring coronavirus task force resources to bear on issue of school emergency preparedness. I would like to thank my colleagues at the Department of Health for a close and continuous collaboration on this goal. Combating stigma; finally, I would like to add to this. The public health professionals on this stage and at the CDC have provided detailed guidance regarding the prevention of coronavirus disease 2019. The CDC also warns us that fear and anxiety can lead to social stigma towards Chinese or Asian Americans. Let us make sure that we're better than that because stigma hurts everyone, bullying and harassment in our schools hurt everyone, educators, members of the public, let's all we commit to raising awareness of this information without spreading fear or stigma or stigmatization. Thank you, Governor.

State Police Superintendent, Colonel Pat Callahan: Amen on the points on stigma – stigmatization. Lamont, thank you. Please help me welcome our host, the Superintendent of the State Police, Colonel Pat Callahan.

State Police Superintendent, Colonel Pat Callahan: Thanks, Governor.

Governor Murphy: Pleasure.

State Police Superintendent, Colonel Pat Callahan: Good afternoon, everybody. I'll be very brief. I would like to thank the Governor, his leadership, and all the partners that you see here today. From an emergency management standpoint, we look at this as we have with of the other challenges that have faced New Jersey and come out with those pillars of emergency management, preparedness, mitigation, response and recovery. The whole goal of the preparedness and mitigation part is to not have to get to response and recovery but we're prepared to do that. Our emergency management staff here at the State Emergency Operations Center, embedded right here at the ROIC has been working since the middle of January with Commissioner Persichilli and all the partners up here, John Bilich from the Port Authority, across all levels of government. We're in constant communication with state, county and local health officials to make sure that the citizens of New Jersey are safe and protected. That's what we're -- that's what we're here for. So, again, humbled to be part of the team and appreciate all the efforts that have gone on in the last six weeks and I look forward to making sure that that communication and preparedness and mitigation efforts remain robust for all of us here in New Jersey. Governor, thank you, sir.

Interviewer: Thank you, Colonel. Deep appreciation for that and for hosting us and for everything you do. Last but not least, and then I take a few questions. The Head of Security for the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey. Please help me welcome, John Bilich.

Chief of Security at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, John Bilich: Thank you, Governor. Good afternoon. We continue to work closely with all our federal, state and local partners, particularly New Jersey Department of Health and the New Jersey State Police. Screening started on February 3, and it's being led by the Custom Border Protection and Federal Center for Disease Control. At that time, when it started back on February 23, there were 29 direct flights from Mainland China, today there are zero. However, there is a daily scrub of travel data that the Custom Border Patrol conducts, and as a result of that there are on average 75 people that are screened daily. Of those only one has been identified as requiring quarantine, and that happened on February 4. We haven't seen in Newark and/or Kennedy, a quarantine condition since February 5. If in instances where there might be the need to quarantine and/or take somebody to a hospital, a process has been outlined in which the individual is taken ramp side, escorted by the PAPD accompanying the New Jersey Department of Health; this is done to facilitate the quick removal of the patient for necessary attention and it eliminates unnecessary contact with the general public. We stand up in airport operation center that's -- that stood up 24/7, this is our coordination point in which we communicate with all partners throughout any event or go through the schedule for today, the next day, and the week ahead. As of yesterday, in addition to screening done for individuals, citizens, green card holders, and/or flight crews from China, it's -- Iran has been added. So the Port Authority is prepared to continue to assist in any way we can and work as partners going forward to protect public health. So, I thank all of you and I thank the Governor. Thank you.

Governor Murphy: I appreciate it. We'll take a couple of questions. Before we do a couple of quick thoughts; one is, I'd like to keep it on topic. If you've got off-topic, we'll figure out a way to get back to you, maybe even on the side or at some point. Secondly, we've said several of us have said this, the amount of folks having been tested so far in New Jersey is low. You just heard that through John's lens, through the Port Authority; Judy talked about that as well. You've heard us say several -- several of us say again today, that the overall risk right now is low, and that's a fact. I don't want anyone to mistake those statements with any amount of casualness. We're taking this aggressively, seriously, doing everything we can proactively to get out ahead of anything that might come our way. So, this is a constant, there is no topic I think in government right now, that is being more within our teams, across our departments that is either a higher priority or that is getting discussed more. So again, relatively low public health risk, because that's a fact at the moment. Don't assume for one second that we're casual in any single way about this, we are taking this very seriously, aggressively, proactively doing everything we can to try to get out ahead of it.

Reporter: Governor. Can somebody please enumerate how many people in New Jersey have gone through or currently in quarantine from whatever source of origin travel? And the person who was [Inaudible] this past weekend that was tested for coronavirus; what kind of symptoms can you share about that person that raised the alarm bells?

 

Governor Murphy: I'm not sure. Yeah, I think we'll probably do that as a general matter because I don't want to violate any privacy issues. There is no one quarantine at the moment, that's -- so the zero persons who are quarantined and there have only been a handful. John mentioned one person who was a traveler, and there were four people out of a cruise ship as I recall, all of whom have left New Jersey.

Reporter: [Inaudible] we've heard that 13 in Ocean County and 9 [Inaudible].

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: You're talking about those that are home on self-quarantine, low risk and medium risk; I don't have those numbers. Do we? We'll be able to get that for you. These are individuals that have had some travel or connection with someone who has had travel through particularly, Mainland China at this point. And they are screened in their home, but none on high risk…

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: They are asymptomatic.

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: Yeah, asymptomatic, no high risk. They're all low to medium and primarily low risk.

Governor Murphy: This is an abundance of caution I think is the way. I guess the general -- Judy, I'm practicing without a license here; the general -- the general symptoms that someone would exhibit would be a fever, respiratory issues, coughing, those would probably be the three things.

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: Shortness of breath, coughing, sniffling and certainly fever; they are symptomatic.

Governor Murphy: I think we're not going to speak about a specific situation.

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: Low risk people, most of them are asymptomatic.

Governor Murphy: We'll come over here.

Reporter: Do you saw anyone who is showing signs of flu and with no other reason; were they may have been tested?

Governor Murphy: No.

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: No.

Governor Murphy: Someone who was pneumonia -- pneumonia and there is no obvious source for that pneumonia, that's now been added to the person's under investigation characteristics. Is that accurate?

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: Correct.

Reporter: So there will be -- in New Jersey there will be more tests and you're expecting some cases to be there?

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: It is not unusual under any circumstances that there is a number of people in hospitals in New Jersey that have pneumonia, where the cause is undetermined. They don't get a culture of a bacterium or that they just don't know, that's a very -- I don't want to say common but it happens a lot.

Governor Murphy: And so there is one person right now who we are expecting to test today who fits that criteria.

Reporter: So -- but you said there are likely more cases to be tested in the future and you're expecting at some point to have a confirmed case of coronavirus in New Jersey?

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: I would have to say, given what we're seeing in some other states, I would not be surprised if that happened.

Governor Murphy: I don't think we should be shocked if that were to happen, please.

Reporter: You were talking about [Inaudible]. How widely are those distributions available or the kits for individual doctor's offices or urgent cares? Well, how available are they?

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: You have to be approved by the FDA to do the testing. At this point, The Department of Health lab is the only approved lab in New Jersey. There are other commercial enterprises that are going through quality control to be able to prove to the FDA they should be…

Governor Murphy: As well as healthcare providers.

Reporter: To gather the samples, that's what I meant. I mean, the readily available is to let them to take samples and send it to you folks. Is that difficult to do?

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: The samples are nasal pharyngeal swabs, the sampling…

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: Please, can you give me a sec. Please?

Governor Murphy:Commissioner, can you talk about the root cause of a school to have to be closed and/or district? And what are some of the protocols that tells the districts have in place to keep those kids educated at all?

Education Commissioner, Dr. Lamont Repollet: Guidance from the Commissioner of Health, The Health Department and from CDC in regards to that because it's a medical condition today. It's been students who have been forced to close as a result of medical condition. And regards to school closures and school clothes, we normally have that process in place for that protocols. However, this is something different because now the school closure may be of a health concern rather than Super storm Sandy.

Reporter: Inaudible

Education Commissioner, Dr. Lamont Repollet: Well, they will continue education whether through online platforms, where there is through a lot of communication -- Google Docs, Google Drive, is one of the most popular platforms we have. A lot of districts have various platforms that can deliver information or instruction via the internet.

Governor Murphy: There's also -- I think, Lamont may have referred to this; we had a long discussion upstairs. There are also sort of some baby steps that you can take that some schools are taking, such as postponing general assemblies, it would be example of that -- to sort of keep kids in the cohort of their classroom. Please.

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: Yes.

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: We won't get into the details, the person has not yet been tested. I want to make sure I've said that is correct, right. They're not yet tested. This is a person who is actually at home has been -- has had a medical issue, and I'll leave out the specifics of the actual case. Please. I'll come back to you.

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: Lieutenant Governor, we keep upto speed on everything we do, including this. Please.

Reporter: You go to this screening of the Newark International, therefore, who are these people? Where are they coming from? What countries? And what's the protocol?

Governor Murphy: I think the genesis is still overwhelmingly China and now Iran, right?

Chief of Security at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, John Bilich: Sure, that's correct. So anybody that has a nexus to China based on travel itineraries or history of touching China, they have to be a US citizen and or green card holder or even a flight crew person that emanates out of China. Maybe they flew went into Paris, and then they come to us; they'll be -- they'll be identified and they'll be screen because they know -- they are known to have had a touch with China, Mainland China, and now Iran.

Governor Murphy: So we saw just that -- John reminded me this, this is extraordinary. Literally four weeks ago today -- today, there were 29 direct flights into North Liberty from somewhere China, there are now none. That's got from 29 to zero, but folks are still traveling through Paris or wherever it might be and still coming in.

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: I think -- I think you -- I think, well, there aren't a lot going to Iran. So that's -- that's an easier one to deal with. That's –

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: Yeah, I know that. But again, I'm not making light of it, but there isn't -- that's not a big bucket. Use your common sense; we've got a family member who's potentially traveling somewhere in the next few weeks, and we were having this discussion at the dinner table last night. I think you have to use your common sense, including -- is it possible that while you're in country-X, that they have some sort of a community spread or some sort of a positive test, and you by -- completely innocent and completely healthy, unrelated to the test may be limited in terms of your own activity when you're coming back in terms of quarantine requirements, etcetera.

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: I'm not -- I'm not -- I'm not saying it was even a child, I said a family member. Please. I apologize. I tried, I tried. No go that side, we'll get to you all. Could one of you please ask?

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: No, I didn't think there is any new on the call. It was informative, Alex Azar, who we've known over the years was good. Their communication, I would give them high marks on their availability and communication. The two areas that we're going to need help on and by the way, they're acknowledging it and we're acknowledging, and Judy and team are going to follow-up on this; I would guess by tomorrow at latest is whatever medical supplies do we think we need? And before you ask, I'm not -- we don't have an answer for that yet, but just again, to be preventative and prepared. And also how much this is all costing us; they have -- to their credit, they've got an explicit willingness to reimburse and/or figure out where we can get backstop financially. They want to get an Appropriations Bill through Congress very quickly. There's some discussion as to what the amount should be, the speaker was here in New Jersey over the weekend. It feels very bipartisan to me, she was very supportive; I think they are trying right now to figure out what that number ought to look like. But I would give the Vice President and the team that we've been dealing with pretty consistently, George Helmy in the back has been literally constant non-stop communication with the White House since, in particular, over the past couple of weeks, but in particular, since last week. Please, and we'll come back.

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: They're at home, right? The person the person is at home, we're not going to acknowledge any of the details of it, right. Is that…

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: Bless you. Please, I hope that was into your arm.

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: You heard Lisa say in particular, there's been a run on masks. I know in New York City, I think even more so than in New Jersey. Yeah, I mean -- listen, I -- I think everyone's got to use common sense here. When we say there is a low risk, we mean it. That doesn't mean that -- that we're -- as I said, we're being casual or that folks should be casual. I personally think you got to use your common sense, and there is at the moment at least no reason to be behaving in some sort of an abnormal behavior. Would you all agree with that? Again, I'm practicing without a license up here. Dustin?

Reporter: Inaudible.

Governor Murphy: Come on, down. So Judy, how many tests have been done in total?

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: Eight, and they are all negative.

Governor Murphy: Eight and all negative.

Reporter: Inaudible.

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: Well, the capacity it right now is determined by the number of kits that we have. So At this point, we probably -- at the rate we have right now, we could go a month. But if it increases, we would need more kits.

Governor Murphy:  And Dustin, this would be on the list of -- when I mentioned a minute ago, with the Trump administration and the Vice President asking, what are your needs? It's dollars and medical supplies, and certainly kits are on that list. Please?

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy:You get to meet John, who's going to come up and answer.

Chief of Security at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, John Bilich: So, if you're flagged you -- the CDC sees you, there is a series of questions. There is an evaluation of you, they take their temperature if there is an affirmative answer to a question and/or a temperature check, then there is some sort of tertiary screening and then a determination is made by CDC.

Governor Murphy: Actually, I want to make sure Brian, I'll get to you. I want to get people who haven't asked yet. Michael?

Reporter: Sure. I was hoping for some clarification on what's the criteria when something gets described as a suspected case, some people -- newsroom or public will hear that and think that's a probable case? Some people will think it's a possible case; what does that mean?

Governor Murphy: So, let me let me just take a shot at this, and then, Lisa is going to give you the medical. So, persons under investigation; how do you get on that list is basically what you're asking. I guess symptoms is one reason, right; so your temperature, coughing, respiratory issues, and it's not imminently traceable to some particular event like your spouse had the same thing and you caught it from them. Secondly, it would be travel.

State Infectious Disease Epidemiology Program Coordinator, Dr. Lisa McHugh: Travel with respiratory symptoms. So we're following this…

Governor Murphy: Travel on top of that, right?

State Infectious Disease Epidemiology Program Coordinator, Dr. Lisa McHugh: Yeah. So we're following the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention; there are persons under investigation. And so really what that means is, it is just a cue to healthcare providers and what we're asking them to look for to report to public health and then we can talk to them and make a decision. So if people have respiratory symptoms, fever and lower respiratory symptoms identified as pneumonia; so people taking an X-ray or getting a CAT scan that identify something -- something -- an issue with their lungs. If they've had travel history, that's one thing but this other larger bucket that CDC has implemented is kind of not having a known travel history but having some type of -- we don't know why you have pneumonia, there is no described -- you know, they haven't run a test and found a bacteria or they haven't run a test and found a virus, which, unfortunately, is very common but this is something that CDC is concerned about because of some of the severe illnesses and trying to keep it out of our healthcare systems; it's something that they are pushing for us to proactively test. And so that's part of our new criteria and that's really the reason for the increase in the testing that we're conducting right now.

Governor Murphy: And the broadening of that definition will invariably lead to a lot more testing to the question I think that Dustin asked, invariably. So for instance, I just want to add to that. So, you're not getting the CDC -- the CDC and CBP, Customs Border Patrol; John, correct me if I'm wrong here. They make the decisions as to which country of origin somebody has to be taken into secondary or tertiary. A person under investigation, that -- that definition is broader. So while you're not stopping -- correct me if I'm wrong, people coming off a flight from Milan, if you find someone with respiratory issues, temperature, coughing, and then been to Milan, that automatically puts them into a different category. That makes sense. Brian?

Reporter: Governor, what you're just talking about and maybe John -- maybe he can't answer this, but we have fairly significant clusters now in [inaudible] Milan, flights being cancelled by the airline.

Governor Murphy: Yeah.

Reporter: And large clusters in South Korea as well; neither of those countries are on this prescribed list. And even in the case of Italy, flights coming in from Rome, you could have had somebody who was up in the (affected) area, whatever, not staying.

Governor Murphy: Thank you for that, I appreciate it.

Reporter: So is there concern at all about these two large -- significantly large cluster countries?

Governor Murphy: I'm just going to say something and want to which I'm going to say sort of it's above my pay-grade. Number one, yes, enough that it's now a criteria -- a criterion on the list of when we should be concerned about testing somebody. It's my guess, I don't think John or I know the answer to this; it's my guess it's only a matter of time until you would think, right. So you've got China and Iran right now, you would think Italy and South Korea; I would guess sooner than later but it's not our decision, that's the CDC-CBP decision. It does impact us though because Newark Liberty, if that were to be the case, would be one of the 11 funneling airports. Is that fair?

Chief of Security at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, John Bilich: It's fair.

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: I mean, I don't know, I -- my complete focus is in the 9 million of us who call this great state their home. And I know we're not there, it's a low level of risk. So I don't want to speak for the President. I think the states were there, it sounds like from the discussion we've just had and as we've been having, State of Washington and California are the two states right now where there is a high amount of focus, not just at the state level, but from the federal administration as well, given the two sort of community spread realities. I would say one thing, which I don't think we've said a whole lot yet; at least to talk about the types of people that are getting hit, and I want to underscore what she said. An adjacent health issue has also been a factor here in the more severe cases, and fatalities; so I wouldn't say in every case but that appears to be an element here. So put it differently, if you're -- if you're a picture of health, you should still -- you know, be preventative, wash your hands, etcetera. And if you were be infected, you still have to take that very seriously, let there be no doubt about it. But in many of these cases, the severe cases, indeed fatalities were involved with people who had an adjacent health issue. Charlie, we're going to end with you, I think. Please.

Reporter: As you know, the President has been making accusations because Democrats have been hyping this political game. Just wondering from... I was just wondering, if -- you know, in your interactions with the Vice President and his team, if they share that try to just downplay that with his views for that notion while you're on the…

Governor Murphy: Yeah. So, again, we were in the White House for other business but this became a big chunk of our conversations on Friday. Spoke to the Vice President on Friday night, George has been on the phone with senior members of staff all weekend, and then we have the conference call or video call which we just had; we've seen none of that. And we have committed that this is not partisan, this is not an opportunity to take shots, this is about public health and that's -- that impacts all of us. So, we've seen literally not a shred of evidence of that.

Reporter: So, they are sharing that same view?

Governor Murphy: Not a bit, not a bit. I would say the Vice President has been extremely professional, as has the secretary, and the -- the other team members with whom we've dealt. And we've committed by the way that on our side we will be the same, we want to get this right. I want to thank this cavalcade of stars up here. And Jared, you're -- I know your thoughts were with us and we were we -- were channeling you the entire way; so, thank you for -- to you and John, and Pat, and obviously, Judy, and Lisa, and Chris, and Lamont. Thank you all very much.

 

Governor Murphy: As the team assembles, most importantly, apologies for being late, and we'll explain why in a minute. But good afternoon, everyone. Come on up here and join us guys. We have a space. I'm joined today by a cavalcade of folks from our team, Commissioner of Health, Judy Persichilli, to my right; State Infectious Disease Epidemiology Program Coordinator, Dr. Lisa McHugh; we'll hear from her. Is Chris with us? Chris Neuwirth? Chris is with us. What's your actual title?

DOH Assistant Commissioner Chris Neuwirth:. So together, we would like to reassure residents of our efforts to protect them and our state giving -- given the growing and rightful concern regarding the corona virus and the COVID-19 illness it cause us. First, to be clear, we currently have no confirmed cases of Corona virus, or COVID-19 in New Jersey. Based on Centers for Disease Control standards, anyone with pneumonia requiring hospitalization, with no other alternate explanatory diagnosis, like the flu, will undergo precautionary testing for the coronavirus. We have just been informed of one person who will be tested and Commissioner, Persichilli will speak to that instance. But to be clear, again, as of now none of the individuals tested under the standard have been positive for coronavirus. The risk to the average American is low, that is a welcome relief but we are not allowing ourselves to sit back in anyway, we are committed to keeping state government in an active and engaged position to respond properly and swiftly to any future individuals who meet the CDC guidelines for coronavirus testing. This is a multi-level and whole of government effort; it includes our hospitals, our schools, and the personnel at our ports and airports. And others up here with me will speak to this, and our preparedness also includes our residents. We remain in close contact with our Federal partners at the CDC and other agencies. In fact, several of us were in the White House on Friday. I spoke to Vice President, Pence on Friday evening. I just participated and many of us were with me, in a video conference with the Vice President, Federal Health & Human Services Secretary, Alex Azar, White House staff, and governors from across the nation to discuss our national preparedness and that's the reason why we're a little bit late, that call went on a little bit longer than we had expected. I was proud as I was on Friday to be able to speak with the Vice President and his team just now, and to once again engage directly in a dialogue to ensure that our needs as States remained front of mind. As I mentioned, we had a very constructive open engagements towards the end of the week, both in the White House on Friday and on the phone Friday night, and the Vice President complimented our state's aggressive and proactive stance. Tomorrow I will convene a series of calls with stakeholders across our state to update them and our preparedness efforts and to ensure we are all working from the same playbook. One call will be with school superintendents and the leaders of our colleges and universities, the second will be with representatives of our business community, and the third will be with local and county officials. Of course, we are in the midst in a bears repeating of cold and flu season and residents with respiratory ailments are more likely to be suffering from a cold or flu, and not coronavirus. As of this moment, as I mentioned earlier, the overall risk of coronavirus is low. The Department of Health is maintaining the coronavirus information page on it's website, which can be found by visiting nj.gov/health, that's nj.gov/health. And the state's toll-free public hotline for any questions that residents may have also remains in service, and that number is 1-800-222-1222. 1-800-222-1222. We ask that any residents with questions or concerns make those, either the website of the phone number their first stops. We are working closely with officials at the Port Authority, which operates Newark Liberty International Airport to ensure that any passengers who may have been exposed to Corona virus are properly screened, so they do not pose a threat to the public at large. Newark Liberty remains one of the nation's 11 airports through which all flights originating in China will land and they are taking their responsibility to securing public health with the utmost seriousness. As you'll likely hear from John in a few moments, the direct flights have stopped. I think when we started this, there were 29 a day. There are now none, but we're still -- the folks are still screening for passengers who have head China in their travels and are coming in through a different port. We also recognize that the threat of the coronavirus is not just to public health but to our economy as well. The global data is showing us this in very real terms. This is another reason why we will remain fiscally responsible to ensure that New Jersey's financial footing remains sound and based on sound practices, and so we have resources available through both our surplus and the rainy day fund to protect against any economic emergency. To residents, the surest way you could protect yourself and your loved ones and friends is to wash your hands frequently with soap and water, to be smart and cover your cough or sneeze, not with your hand but in your sleeve, and to avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. And if you feel under the weather, take a day off from work or school and check-in with your doctor or a local healthcare provider, as we said it is most likely a cold or seasonal flu and not the coronavirus. Only those who meet the CDC's criteria will have specimens tested at the state public health and environmental laboratories which received Federal approval late last week to begin coronavirus testing. All of us up here keep safeguarding the public's health as one of our highest priorities. We take the health and wellness of our 9 million fellow New Jerseyan's as seriously, as we take the health of our families and ourselves. My message to you is this, "We've been at this for weeks, and we are prepared, and we are staying vigilant." A friend of mine had a phrase that I latched on to; it is "No time to panic, but it is time to be prepared." I've said for weeks that state of readiness has been a whole of government approach, and it will continue to be that way and we have your backs. With that, I'd like to invite Health Commissioner, Judy Persichilli to come on to the podium and give us a few words from her perspective. Thank you, Judy.

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: Thank you, Governor. Good afternoon. Governor Murphy, fellow cabinet member. The Department of Health continues to monitor this rapidly evolving and expanding situation. Cases continue to rise across the globe, and in the United States. Globally, there are more than 87,000 cases, and more than 90 cases in the United States. So far New Jersey, eight people have tested negative for novel coronavirus. We've just recently have one individual under investigation, we expect specimens to be delivered sometime later today, and that person will be tested -- that individual is not hospitalized, and at this point is a febrile, and more than likely and we're hoping that that will be a negative test. Although this novel virus is understandably a cause for concern, it is important for New Jersey residents to know that the risk to the general public is still low. We are working closely with the CDC and our public health and healthcare partners to ensure our preparedness levels for this novel virus. At the Department of Health, we responded immediately, and on January 24 we created an internal crisis management team that has met daily since January 24. To help inform the public in late January, we opened a coronavirus hotline. The call center has answered more than 850 calls from the public. They operate 24/7 at 1-800-222-1222 and can accommodate callers in multiple languages. In early February, Governor Murphy signed an executive order establishing a coronavirus task force to coordinate all state efforts to prepare for and respond to the public health hazard posed by this virus. This is a whole of government approach, and at this point we meet weekly. The department has held a series of conference calls with local health departments, and our hospital partners to review the importance of planning for this crisis. The department is working closely with our sister agencies; given the potential impact on schools, we have met with the Department of Education and we are creating a specific subcommittee dedicated to school emergency preparedness. As you know, hospitals are on the front-line of this response. We've met with the hospitals and the New Jersey Hospital Association to go over emergency preparedness and resiliency, and we are actively working with the New Jersey Hospital Association and the hospitals directly to ensure they have sufficient plans in place to prepare for and respond to a surge of ill patients or a supply chain disruption. The department has surveyed the capacity at our hospitals, and there are currently more than 700 negative pressure isolation rooms throughout the state, available full for patients with novel coronavirus symptoms. These rooms' also known as airborne infection isolation rooms provide the necessary protections to prevent contamination throughout the hospital. The New Jersey Department of Health works with hospitals and local health departments through all of our respiratory virus and flu season, and on hundreds of diseases and outbreaks that we are prepared to handle day-in and day-out. It is important to note, the CDC has broadened the definition of persons under investigation to include not only individuals who have history of travel to areas with COVID transmission, identified by the CDC as those countries with a level two or higher travel advisory, but also includes hospitalized patients who come in with a pneumonia in which a cause is not readily identified. With this change, hospitals will be evaluating many more individuals. We are likely going to be performing more testing, as well as confirming more cases. I also want to take this time to remind everyone that the flu continues to be a public health concern right now in our state. There is currently high flu activity state-wide and there had been more than 5,000 cases of flu and two flu-related child deaths. The same precautions that you take for the flu are exactly what you should be doing to protect yourself from the coronavirus. Use respiratory etiquette; covering coughs and sneezes with a tissue or sleeve, wash your hands often during the day with soap and water for 20 seconds, and stay at home if you are sick. If you have symptoms, you need to visit a doctor's office or an urgent care and emergency room, and you are able call first and tell them why you are coming. I encourage the public to visit our website nj.gov/health for information on novel coronavirus. The website has factsheets, answers to frequently asked questions, travel advisories and guidance for businesses, universities, schools, and healthcare providers. New Jersey continues to work very closely with the CDC and local health partners to monitor the situation. We understand that the public is concerned but I want to assure you that we are taking all steps available to protect the residents of New Jersey. As this situation evolves, things will change quickly, and we will continue to keep you informed. Thank you.

Governor Murphy: Well said. Thank you, Judy. We're going to keep things moving along here because again, I apologize for starting late. Please help me welcome Dr. Lisa McHugh who's the Infectious Disease Epidemiology Program Coordinator. Doc, come on down.

 

State Infectious Disease Epidemiology Program Coordinator, Dr. Lisa McHugh: Thank you, Governor. So first, I just want to give a brief update of where we stand to date. So, in addition to several new cases that have been reported in states predominantly on the West Coast, including California, Oregon and Washington State, there have been many recent additions this weekend; two individuals reporting confirmed cases including New York City, Florida and Rhode Island. So some of these cases have had direct travel to areas with known COVID transmission, while others appear to potentially have no linkages to those areas, indicating the likely potential of community transmission of the virus in these particular areas. So another quite common question that we get is, do we know more about the clinical illness? I'm sure you've heard many of us say that there is a lot that's still unknown, and we are still learning about this virus. But as new cases are being reported to us, we are garnering new information. Overall, the illness does appear to have a very wide range of severity, from cases with very mild illness, similar to the common cold, which does appear to be the majority of cases that are occurring to those with more severe illness requiring hospitalization. Those with the most severe presentations have been in adults predominantly with underlying health conditions. Worldwide, thankfully, there have been very few cases reported in children, and of those reported -- of those illnesses in children they tend to have been mild. Many are asking what New Jersey is doing to identify COVID in the state? And we are closely following guidance published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the identification and testing of potential cases. Based on the growing number of cases that have been reported, late last week CDC modified the criteria has been -- has already been discussed, which are evaluating these people for testing. Around the same time, we also learn that the state public health laboratory had the ability to begin testing for COVID. As I mentioned, like all other states we are using this new criteria provided by CDC to evaluate individuals. It's important to remember that these are screening criteria, useful in identifying persons that require additional evaluation; these are not diagnostic criteria for COVID-19. Patients meeting the surveillance criteria might have many other conditions including influenza, other respiratory virus, and bacterial infections. We're encouraging healthcare providers to conduct a thorough clinical evaluation early in the course of their hospitalization to help us rollout some of these more common infections and other causes of lower respiratory tract disease. The new CDC criteria that we're now using is very broad, and it doesn't include not only individuals who have a travel history to areas with COVID transmission, as identified by CDC as those countries with a Level-2 or higher travel advisory, but also includes individuals hospitalized for pneumonia in which a cause is not readily identifiable. This broad approach means that we are -- will have more individuals eligible for testing, but it also does not mean that every one of these individuals will be tested. Commonly, community-acquired pneumonia cases requiring hospitalization are fairly common and occur very frequently, and often there is not a known cause for their illnesses. The New Jersey Department of Health Communicable Disease service staff is using information that we know about COVID, both it's epidemiologic and clinical criteria to determine who best fits this criteria for testing, especially in that group that does not have identified travel risk factors. As been previously mentioned, we've had three individuals who've been approved for testing over the weekend and have all been found to be negative, and our team continues to work with healthcare providers on evaluating and approving individuals that have been reported to us. With no confirmed cases in New Jersey, the risk remains low to the general population, but is slightly higher for those individuals who may have traveled to some of these areas where COVID transmission is occurring. And even though there are no cases, and the number of detections remains small, as we begin to do this additional testing, it does remain likely that we may identify cases in the near future. And I know that individuals are concerned about COVID but I want to assure you that all individuals at all levels of state and local government, as well as the healthcare provider community in our state have been preparing for COVID-19, and should we identify a case or several cases, we are ready to respond and to begin to take necessary public health actions.
I know all of this may sound like some bad news but the good news is that, we don't have any cases in New Jersey, and there are actions and preparations that you can take to begin to keep you, your families, and your communities safe. Schools and businesses should be preparing for ill students and staff, and we suggest that you review guidance materials that are on the CDC and NJDOH website on how you can best prepare your communities. As the Commissioner had mentioned, individuals are recommended to take just key prevention for all illnesses, frequent hand-washing, avoid touching your face, covering coughs and sneezes in a tissue or your elbow, and stay home from school or work if you're sick, and if you are sick, avoid crowded public places. If you do become sick, monitor your symptoms at home by taking your temperature and contact your healthcare provider for medical advice. They can help you determine if it's necessary for you to be evaluated in a healthcare setting and give you steps that you might take to help protect others in that healthcare setting, should you need to be evaluated. My colleague in a few will provide some additional details and steps on what additional steps you might do to prepare, and I just want to -- I just want to illustrate one additional thing in which we are not recommending that the average individual do, and that is stock-up on masks. CDC is not recommending the routine use of face-masks or respiratory respirators outside of the workplace setting, meaning in the community; these are reserved for our healthcare providers. Most often, the spread of respiratory viruses from person-to-person happens among close contacts, meaning about within six feet, and with prolonged contact. CDC recommends that everyday preventive measures that I've just outlined is what you should be following. You should only be wearing a mask if a healthcare professional recommends it, and this may happen when an individual is sick and is being evaluated in the healthcare setting, and again, this is to help protect others from getting infected from that individual that is ill. Thank you.

Governor Murphy: Thank you, Lisa. Lisa mentioned testing, as did Judy, as did I; and I glossed over a point before Chris comes up. And I mentioned passingly in my remarks that we had gotten the approval to test in New Jersey as of late last week; that's a big deal for us. So I think, Judy, our turnaround release or Chris, our turnaround now is something that looks like eight hours as opposed to having to send the swath down to Atlanta. If we get a positive test, we will still send it down to Atlanta to triple-check but negative tests, we're able to -- we're able to get our arms around much more quickly. So with that, please help me welcome Assistant Commissioner, Department of Health, Chris Neuwirth. Chris?

DOH Assistant Commissioner Chris Neuwirth: Thank you. Good afternoon. The Department of Health continues to work closely with Federal, State and local partners to ensure all COVID-19 preparedness and response activities are happening -- that are happening here in New Jersey are aligned, organized and fully coordinated. Emergency management and state health officials, including members of the governor's task force and the department's crisis management team remain in constant contact with our colleagues at the US Department of Health & Human Services, and the CDC to identify, develop and share planning resources for healthcare facilities, K-12 schools, institutions of higher education, and of course, individuals and families. There are a number of preparedness activities that we encourage healthcare facilities, including hospitals and long-term care centers to implement immediately to mitigate against COVID-19 transmission, and to conserve limited medical resources. First, the CDC -- first, the CDC permits the limited reuse of N95 respirators for healthcare workers while treating cohorted patients, all with the same respiratory illness. A healthcare provider may continue to wear their own N95 mask while treating multiple patients with the same illness. Second, facility should consider using alternative respiratory protection devices such as air-purifying respirators and powered air-purifying respirators. These devices can provide the same or higher levels of protection as an N95 facemask, but are reusable and can be worn by healthcare providers for longer periods of time while treating patients. Third, healthcare facility should prioritize existing medical supplies, including N95 respirators for healthcare workers directly caring for individuals with communicable respiratory illnesses. Other healthcare workers not providing direct physical care may be able to complete their activities at safe distances from the patient that would not require them to wear the same level of personal protective equipment. Fourth, healthcare facilities are discouraged from disposing of expired N95 respirators. These expired facemasks can be used for education and training purposes, so that unexpired respirators are conserved. While these are only a few examples of the proactive measures healthcare facilities can take, we want to reassure the public that we're actively working with healthcare providers to ensure they have the latest technical guidance from the CDC. For our K-12 schools and institutions of higher education, we encourage all administrators to review their business continuity plans, identify opportunities to limit, reduce or reschedule mass gatherings, and identify opportunities for delivering academic materials remotely using various technological tools and resources. Individuals and families are reminded to plan for childcare arrangements if schools or daycares are temporarily closed. In addition, individuals should prepare their homes for telecommuting if your employer allows you to work from home. More so, we encourage individuals and families to remain connected with the latest information from the Department of Health by visiting nj.gov/health or calling 1-800-222-1222 if you have any questions. As the situation continues to evolve, The Department of Health will remain in close contact with our federal, state and local partners to ensure all preparedness and response activities are coordinated and that the latest CDC guidance is distributed in a timely and effective manner. Thank you.

Governor Murphy: Thanks, Chris. Thank you, Chris. And I promise never again to forget your title. So, Chris mentioned schools, and obviously that's a question that comes up a lot from parents and kids themselves, so please help me welcome the Commissioner of the Department of Education, Dr. Lamont Repollet.

Education Commissioner, Dr. Lamont Repollet: Thanks so much. Governor, Commissioner Persichilli, thank you for the work that you have done and continue to do marshaling every resource of state government to keep the public safe and informed of the latest developments regarding coronavirus. I would like to take this opportunity to remind educators, parents and the public at large of five things. Communication is vital; our County Offices of Education are a boots-on-the-ground. As questions emerge regarding appropriate coronavirus response and preparedness protocols for your district, please direct those questions to your County Office of Education. All county offices are directly in touch with me here in Trenton, the more we know about questions and circumstances faced by different parts of the state, the better information we have to share with our colleagues at the Department of Health, the better we can collaborate to disseminate factual, appropriate resources to our communities. Number two; school-specific guidance from the Department of Health is available. We provided guidance to all of our districts via our broadcast system on February 3. We encourage districts to continually monitor the Department of Health and the CDC's web pages. Existing policies and procedures reporting on home instruction; I would like to remind districts and the public of a few policies and procedures that should already be in place [that minor form 00:27:56] of communities coronavirus planning. On the DoE regulations; districts should have protocols in place for the provisions of home instruction in a home or out-of-school setting, either directly, through online services or through contract with another district for students with temporary or chronic health conditions. All districts are required to immediately report any communicable diseases that are identified, as reported on the Department of Health Regulations, whether confirmed or presumed by the phone -- by phone to the health officer of the jurisdiction which the school is located. Continued collaboration; as Commissioner Persichilli said, our team share a commitment to bring coronavirus task force resources to bear on issue of school emergency preparedness. I would like to thank my colleagues at the Department of Health for a close and continuous collaboration on this goal. Combating stigma; finally, I would like to add to this. The public health professionals on this stage and at the CDC have provided detailed guidance regarding the prevention of coronavirus disease 2019. The CDC also warns us that fear and anxiety can lead to social stigma towards Chinese or Asian Americans. Let us make sure that we're better than that because stigma hurts everyone, bullying and harassment in our schools hurt everyone, educators, members of the public, let's all we commit to raising awareness of this information without spreading fear or stigma or stigmatization. Thank you, Governor.

State Police Superintendent, Colonel Pat Callahan: Amen on the points on stigma – stigmatization. Lamont, thank you. Please help me welcome our host, the Superintendent of the State Police, Colonel Pat Callahan.

State Police Superintendent, Colonel Pat Callahan: Thanks, Governor.

Governor Murphy: Pleasure.

State Police Superintendent, Colonel Pat Callahan: Good afternoon, everybody. I'll be very brief. I would like to thank the Governor, his leadership, and all the partners that you see here today. From an emergency management standpoint, we look at this as we have with of the other challenges that have faced New Jersey and come out with those pillars of emergency management, preparedness, mitigation, response and recovery. The whole goal of the preparedness and mitigation part is to not have to get to response and recovery but we're prepared to do that. Our emergency management staff here at the State Emergency Operations Center, embedded right here at the ROIC has been working since the middle of January with Commissioner Persichilli and all the partners up here, John Bilich from the Port Authority, across all levels of government. We're in constant communication with state, county and local health officials to make sure that the citizens of New Jersey are safe and protected. That's what we're -- that's what we're here for. So, again, humbled to be part of the team and appreciate all the efforts that have gone on in the last six weeks and I look forward to making sure that that communication and preparedness and mitigation efforts remain robust for all of us here in New Jersey. Governor, thank you, sir.

Interviewer: Thank you, Colonel. Deep appreciation for that and for hosting us and for everything you do. Last but not least, and then I take a few questions. The Head of Security for the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey. Please help me welcome, John Bilich.

Chief of Security at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, John Bilich: Thank you, Governor. Good afternoon. We continue to work closely with all our federal, state and local partners, particularly New Jersey Department of Health and the New Jersey State Police. Screening started on February 3, and it's being led by the Custom Border Protection and Federal Center for Disease Control. At that time, when it started back on February 23, there were 29 direct flights from Mainland China, today there are zero. However, there is a daily scrub of travel data that the Custom Border Patrol conducts, and as a result of that there are on average 75 people that are screened daily. Of those only one has been identified as requiring quarantine, and that happened on February 4. We haven't seen in Newark and/or Kennedy, a quarantine condition since February 5. If in instances where there might be the need to quarantine and/or take somebody to a hospital, a process has been outlined in which the individual is taken ramp side, escorted by the PAPD accompanying the New Jersey Department of Health; this is done to facilitate the quick removal of the patient for necessary attention and it eliminates unnecessary contact with the general public. We stand up in airport operation center that's -- that stood up 24/7, this is our coordination point in which we communicate with all partners throughout any event or go through the schedule for today, the next day, and the week ahead. As of yesterday, in addition to screening done for individuals, citizens, green card holders, and/or flight crews from China, it's -- Iran has been added. So the Port Authority is prepared to continue to assist in any way we can and work as partners going forward to protect public health. So, I thank all of you and I thank the Governor. Thank you.

Governor Murphy: I appreciate it. We'll take a couple of questions. Before we do a couple of quick thoughts; one is, I'd like to keep it on topic. If you've got off-topic, we'll figure out a way to get back to you, maybe even on the side or at some point. Secondly, we've said several of us have said this, the amount of folks having been tested so far in New Jersey is low. You just heard that through John's lens, through the Port Authority; Judy talked about that as well. You've heard us say several -- several of us say again today, that the overall risk right now is low, and that's a fact. I don't want anyone to mistake those statements with any amount of casualness. We're taking this aggressively, seriously, doing everything we can proactively to get out ahead of anything that might come our way. So, this is a constant, there is no topic I think in government right now, that is being more within our teams, across our departments that is either a higher priority or that is getting discussed more. So again, relatively low public health risk, because that's a fact at the moment. Don't assume for one second that we're casual in any single way about this, we are taking this very seriously, aggressively, proactively doing everything we can to try to get out ahead of it.

Reporter: Governor. Can somebody please enumerate how many people in New Jersey have gone through or currently in quarantine from whatever source of origin travel? And the person who was [Inaudible] this past weekend that was tested for coronavirus; what kind of symptoms can you share about that person that raised the alarm bells?

 

Governor Murphy: I'm not sure. Yeah, I think we'll probably do that as a general matter because I don't want to violate any privacy issues. There is no one quarantine at the moment, that's -- so the zero persons who are quarantined and there have only been a handful. John mentioned one person who was a traveler, and there were four people out of a cruise ship as I recall, all of whom have left New Jersey.

Reporter: [Inaudible] we've heard that 13 in Ocean County and 9 [Inaudible].

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: You're talking about those that are home on self-quarantine, low risk and medium risk; I don't have those numbers. Do we? We'll be able to get that for you. These are individuals that have had some travel or connection with someone who has had travel through particularly, Mainland China at this point. And they are screened in their home, but none on high risk…

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: They are asymptomatic.

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: Yeah, asymptomatic, no high risk. They're all low to medium and primarily low risk.

Governor Murphy: This is an abundance of caution I think is the way. I guess the general -- Judy, I'm practicing without a license here; the general -- the general symptoms that someone would exhibit would be a fever, respiratory issues, coughing, those would probably be the three things.

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: Shortness of breath, coughing, sniffling and certainly fever; they are symptomatic.

Governor Murphy: I think we're not going to speak about a specific situation.

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: Low risk people, most of them are asymptomatic.

Governor Murphy: We'll come over here.

Reporter: Do you saw anyone who is showing signs of flu and with no other reason; were they may have been tested?

Governor Murphy: No.

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: No.

Governor Murphy: Someone who was pneumonia -- pneumonia and there is no obvious source for that pneumonia, that's now been added to the person's under investigation characteristics. Is that accurate?

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: Correct.

Reporter: So there will be -- in New Jersey there will be more tests and you're expecting some cases to be there?

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: It is not unusual under any circumstances that there is a number of people in hospitals in New Jersey that have pneumonia, where the cause is undetermined. They don't get a culture of a bacterium or that they just don't know, that's a very -- I don't want to say common but it happens a lot.

Governor Murphy: And so there is one person right now who we are expecting to test today who fits that criteria.

Reporter: So -- but you said there are likely more cases to be tested in the future and you're expecting at some point to have a confirmed case of coronavirus in New Jersey?

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: I would have to say, given what we're seeing in some other states, I would not be surprised if that happened.

Governor Murphy: I don't think we should be shocked if that were to happen, please.

Reporter: You were talking about [Inaudible]. How widely are those distributions available or the kits for individual doctor's offices or urgent cares? Well, how available are they?

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: You have to be approved by the FDA to do the testing. At this point, The Department of Health lab is the only approved lab in New Jersey. There are other commercial enterprises that are going through quality control to be able to prove to the FDA they should be…

Governor Murphy: As well as healthcare providers.

Reporter: To gather the samples, that's what I meant. I mean, the readily available is to let them to take samples and send it to you folks. Is that difficult to do?

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: The samples are nasal pharyngeal swabs, the sampling…

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: Please, can you give me a sec. Please?

Governor Murphy:Commissioner, can you talk about the root cause of a school to have to be closed and/or district? And what are some of the protocols that tells the districts have in place to keep those kids educated at all?

Education Commissioner, Dr. Lamont Repollet: Guidance from the Commissioner of Health, The Health Department and from CDC in regards to that because it's a medical condition today. It's been students who have been forced to close as a result of medical condition. And regards to school closures and school clothes, we normally have that process in place for that protocols. However, this is something different because now the school closure may be of a health concern rather than Super storm Sandy.

Reporter: Inaudible

Education Commissioner, Dr. Lamont Repollet: Well, they will continue education whether through online platforms, where there is through a lot of communication -- Google Docs, Google Drive, is one of the most popular platforms we have. A lot of districts have various platforms that can deliver information or instruction via the internet.

Governor Murphy: There's also -- I think, Lamont may have referred to this; we had a long discussion upstairs. There are also sort of some baby steps that you can take that some schools are taking, such as postponing general assemblies, it would be example of that -- to sort of keep kids in the cohort of their classroom. Please.

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: Yes.

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: We won't get into the details, the person has not yet been tested. I want to make sure I've said that is correct, right. They're not yet tested. This is a person who is actually at home has been -- has had a medical issue, and I'll leave out the specifics of the actual case. Please. I'll come back to you.

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: Lieutenant Governor, we keep upto speed on everything we do, including this. Please.

Reporter: You go to this screening of the Newark International, therefore, who are these people? Where are they coming from? What countries? And what's the protocol?

Governor Murphy: I think the genesis is still overwhelmingly China and now Iran, right?

Chief of Security at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, John Bilich: Sure, that's correct. So anybody that has a nexus to China based on travel itineraries or history of touching China, they have to be a US citizen and or green card holder or even a flight crew person that emanates out of China. Maybe they flew went into Paris, and then they come to us; they'll be -- they'll be identified and they'll be screen because they know -- they are known to have had a touch with China, Mainland China, and now Iran.

Governor Murphy: So we saw just that -- John reminded me this, this is extraordinary. Literally four weeks ago today -- today, there were 29 direct flights into North Liberty from somewhere China, there are now none. That's got from 29 to zero, but folks are still traveling through Paris or wherever it might be and still coming in.

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: I think -- I think you -- I think, well, there aren't a lot going to Iran. So that's -- that's an easier one to deal with. That's –

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: Yeah, I know that. But again, I'm not making light of it, but there isn't -- that's not a big bucket. Use your common sense; we've got a family member who's potentially traveling somewhere in the next few weeks, and we were having this discussion at the dinner table last night. I think you have to use your common sense, including -- is it possible that while you're in country-X, that they have some sort of a community spread or some sort of a positive test, and you by -- completely innocent and completely healthy, unrelated to the test may be limited in terms of your own activity when you're coming back in terms of quarantine requirements, etcetera.

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: I'm not -- I'm not -- I'm not saying it was even a child, I said a family member. Please. I apologize. I tried, I tried. No go that side, we'll get to you all. Could one of you please ask?

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: No, I didn't think there is any new on the call. It was informative, Alex Azar, who we've known over the years was good. Their communication, I would give them high marks on their availability and communication. The two areas that we're going to need help on and by the way, they're acknowledging it and we're acknowledging, and Judy and team are going to follow-up on this; I would guess by tomorrow at latest is whatever medical supplies do we think we need? And before you ask, I'm not -- we don't have an answer for that yet, but just again, to be preventative and prepared. And also how much this is all costing us; they have -- to their credit, they've got an explicit willingness to reimburse and/or figure out where we can get backstop financially. They want to get an Appropriations Bill through Congress very quickly. There's some discussion as to what the amount should be, the speaker was here in New Jersey over the weekend. It feels very bipartisan to me, she was very supportive; I think they are trying right now to figure out what that number ought to look like. But I would give the Vice President and the team that we've been dealing with pretty consistently, George Helmy in the back has been literally constant non-stop communication with the White House since, in particular, over the past couple of weeks, but in particular, since last week. Please, and we'll come back.

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: They're at home, right? The person the person is at home, we're not going to acknowledge any of the details of it, right. Is that…

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: Bless you. Please, I hope that was into your arm.

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: You heard Lisa say in particular, there's been a run on masks. I know in New York City, I think even more so than in New Jersey. Yeah, I mean -- listen, I -- I think everyone's got to use common sense here. When we say there is a low risk, we mean it. That doesn't mean that -- that we're -- as I said, we're being casual or that folks should be casual. I personally think you got to use your common sense, and there is at the moment at least no reason to be behaving in some sort of an abnormal behavior. Would you all agree with that? Again, I'm practicing without a license up here. Dustin?

Reporter: Inaudible.

Governor Murphy: Come on, down. So Judy, how many tests have been done in total?

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: Eight, and they are all negative.

Governor Murphy: Eight and all negative.

Reporter: Inaudible.

Commissioner of Health Judith Persichilli: Well, the capacity it right now is determined by the number of kits that we have. So At this point, we probably -- at the rate we have right now, we could go a month. But if it increases, we would need more kits.

Governor Murphy:  And Dustin, this would be on the list of -- when I mentioned a minute ago, with the Trump administration and the Vice President asking, what are your needs? It's dollars and medical supplies, and certainly kits are on that list. Please?

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy:You get to meet John, who's going to come up and answer.

Chief of Security at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, John Bilich: So, if you're flagged you -- the CDC sees you, there is a series of questions. There is an evaluation of you, they take their temperature if there is an affirmative answer to a question and/or a temperature check, then there is some sort of tertiary screening and then a determination is made by CDC.

Governor Murphy: Actually, I want to make sure Brian, I'll get to you. I want to get people who haven't asked yet. Michael?

Reporter: Sure. I was hoping for some clarification on what's the criteria when something gets described as a suspected case, some people -- newsroom or public will hear that and think that's a probable case? Some people will think it's a possible case; what does that mean?

Governor Murphy: So, let me let me just take a shot at this, and then, Lisa is going to give you the medical. So, persons under investigation; how do you get on that list is basically what you're asking. I guess symptoms is one reason, right; so your temperature, coughing, respiratory issues, and it's not imminently traceable to some particular event like your spouse had the same thing and you caught it from them. Secondly, it would be travel.

State Infectious Disease Epidemiology Program Coordinator, Dr. Lisa McHugh: Travel with respiratory symptoms. So we're following this…

Governor Murphy: Travel on top of that, right?

State Infectious Disease Epidemiology Program Coordinator, Dr. Lisa McHugh: Yeah. So we're following the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention; there are persons under investigation. And so really what that means is, it is just a cue to healthcare providers and what we're asking them to look for to report to public health and then we can talk to them and make a decision. So if people have respiratory symptoms, fever and lower respiratory symptoms identified as pneumonia; so people taking an X-ray or getting a CAT scan that identify something -- something -- an issue with their lungs. If they've had travel history, that's one thing but this other larger bucket that CDC has implemented is kind of not having a known travel history but having some type of -- we don't know why you have pneumonia, there is no described -- you know, they haven't run a test and found a bacteria or they haven't run a test and found a virus, which, unfortunately, is very common but this is something that CDC is concerned about because of some of the severe illnesses and trying to keep it out of our healthcare systems; it's something that they are pushing for us to proactively test. And so that's part of our new criteria and that's really the reason for the increase in the testing that we're conducting right now.

Governor Murphy: And the broadening of that definition will invariably lead to a lot more testing to the question I think that Dustin asked, invariably. So for instance, I just want to add to that. So, you're not getting the CDC -- the CDC and CBP, Customs Border Patrol; John, correct me if I'm wrong here. They make the decisions as to which country of origin somebody has to be taken into secondary or tertiary. A person under investigation, that -- that definition is broader. So while you're not stopping -- correct me if I'm wrong, people coming off a flight from Milan, if you find someone with respiratory issues, temperature, coughing, and then been to Milan, that automatically puts them into a different category. That makes sense. Brian?

Reporter: Governor, what you're just talking about and maybe John -- maybe he can't answer this, but we have fairly significant clusters now in [inaudible] Milan, flights being cancelled by the airline.

Governor Murphy: Yeah.

Reporter: And large clusters in South Korea as well; neither of those countries are on this prescribed list. And even in the case of Italy, flights coming in from Rome, you could have had somebody who was up in the (affected) area, whatever, not staying.

Governor Murphy: Thank you for that, I appreciate it.

Reporter: So is there concern at all about these two large -- significantly large cluster countries?

Governor Murphy: I'm just going to say something and want to which I'm going to say sort of it's above my pay-grade. Number one, yes, enough that it's now a criteria -- a criterion on the list of when we should be concerned about testing somebody. It's my guess, I don't think John or I know the answer to this; it's my guess it's only a matter of time until you would think, right. So you've got China and Iran right now, you would think Italy and South Korea; I would guess sooner than later but it's not our decision, that's the CDC-CBP decision. It does impact us though because Newark Liberty, if that were to be the case, would be one of the 11 funneling airports. Is that fair?

Chief of Security at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, John Bilich: It's fair.

Reporter: Inaudible

Governor Murphy: I mean, I don't know, I -- my complete focus is in the 9 million of us who call this great state their home. And I know we're not there, it's a low level of risk. So I don't want to speak for the President. I think the states were there, it sounds like from the discussion we've just had and as we've been having, State of Washington and California are the two states right now where there is a high amount of focus, not just at the state level, but from the federal administration as well, given the two sort of community spread realities. I would say one thing, which I don't think we've said a whole lot yet; at least to talk about the types of people that are getting hit, and I want to underscore what she said. An adjacent health issue has also been a factor here in the more severe cases, and fatalities; so I wouldn't say in every case but that appears to be an element here. So put it differently, if you're -- if you're a picture of health, you should still -- you know, be preventative, wash your hands, etcetera. And if you were be infected, you still have to take that very seriously, let there be no doubt about it. But in many of these cases, the severe cases, indeed fatalities were involved with people who had an adjacent health issue. Charlie, we're going to end with you, I think. Please.

Reporter: As you know, the President has been making accusations because Democrats have been hyping this political game. Just wondering from... I was just wondering, if -- you know, in your interactions with the Vice President and his team, if they share that try to just downplay that with his views for that notion while you're on the…

Governor Murphy: Yeah. So, again, we were in the White House for other business but this became a big chunk of our conversations on Friday. Spoke to the Vice President on Friday night, George has been on the phone with senior members of staff all weekend, and then we have the conference call or video call which we just had; we've seen none of that. And we have committed that this is not partisan, this is not an opportunity to take shots, this is about public health and that's -- that impacts all of us. So, we've seen literally not a shred of evidence of that.

Reporter: So, they are sharing that same view?

Governor Murphy: Not a bit, not a bit. I would say the Vice President has been extremely professional, as has the secretary, and the -- the other team members with whom we've dealt. And we've committed by the way that on our side we will be the same, we want to get this right. I want to thank this cavalcade of stars up here. And Jared, you're -- I know your thoughts were with us and we were we -- were channeling you the entire way; so, thank you for -- to you and John, and Pat, and obviously, Judy, and Lisa, and Chris, and Lamont. Thank you all very much.