Holiday Covid spread remains a risk despite a coronavirus vaccine rollout, according to Democratic New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy on Monday.
“We’re still in the thick of things,” Murphy told CNBC’s “Squawk Box.” The vaccine distribution “is really good news, but I think the next six, eight weeks are going to be really tough in New Jersey and in our country.”
“There’s a lot of fatigue, a lot of private spread, a lot of holidays, cold weather — all of that is conspiring. So in the near term, I would just beg ... people to do the right things and to keep their guard up,” added Murphy.
The governor’s statements came as the first Americans outside of clinical trials took vaccination against Covid-19. The Food and Drug Administration granted an emergency use authorization for Pfizer and BioNTech’s vaccine Friday, allowing healthcare workers to receive their first shots Monday morning.
In New Jersey, the initial vaccinations for hospital workers will be shipped Tuesday morning at University Hospital in Newark, according to Murphy.
Murphy's state will receive 76,000 doses, which can serve 38,000 people to get inoculated since they must take two shots. From there, Murphy explained each week the state will receive “an increased allotment” of Pfizer-BioNTech doses “until it reaches a plateau early year.”
He explained that Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine could be approved soon. If that happens, New Jersey expects “another series of deliveries over time from them,” Murphy said.
The seven-day average of new Covid infections daily in the U.S. is at a record high of 213,748, based on a CNBC analysis of data gathered by Johns Hopkins University. The seven-day average of Covid-19 deaths per day is 2,403, according to CNBC’s analysis. That is a 9% increase since a week ago.
Murphy pointed out that the pandemic restrictions lead to exhaustion, saying “I know it stinks. Who doesn’t have fatigue, including yours truly?” However, he asked people to keep holiday gatherings in December among people “inside your bubble,” as well as continue wearing face masks and physical distancing.
“It’s a basic set of principles but they’re the ones we have to rely on. New Jersians have been extraordinary. We just need another kick, particularly as we get through the holiday season,” Murphy said.
The number of Covid-19 cases after the holidays may surge, according to White House Health advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci.
He believes that the U.S. may witness a “surge upon a surge” of Covid-19 cases after holidays as holiday parties and shoppers could trigger an outbreak.
“If you look across the United States, we are really in a public health crisis right now,” Dr. Fauci told Colorado Gov. Jared Polis during a livestream session. “Now that we’re in the mid-to late fall, merging on into the winter, we’ve seen, because a variety of circumstances, a surge that has really surpassed the others.”
According to the infectious diseases specialist, the potential surge of Covid-19 cases after holidays is based on the number of people who traveled for Thanksgiving and shared meals with family and friends.
