Governor Murphy Lifts COVID-19 Vaccination Requirement for Health Care Workers in New Jersey

The decision follows recent updates by federal health agencies and aligns New Jersey's COVID-19 policies with the latest CMS guidance.

Governor Phil Murphy of New Jersey signed Executive Order (EO) No. 332 on June 12, 2023, effectively lifting the COVID-19 vaccination requirement for healthcare workers across the state. This move comes in response to recent federal changes to COVID-19 vaccine requirements.

An earlier executive order signed on April 3, 2023, had already lifted the requirement for routine testing for employees in healthcare settings not up-to-date with their COVID-19 vaccinations. The order also removed both the vaccination and testing requirements for workers in congregate settings. 

The new EO eradicates the remaining mandate that healthcare facilities maintain a policy requiring their employees to be updated on their COVID-19 vaccinations.

Governor Murphy stated, “Today’s order aligns our state with recent updates to federal requirements and reflects our different circumstances now, as compared to the past few years.” He continued to emphasize the safety and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines, urging all residents to keep their vaccinations up-to-date.

Healthcare settings impacted by the EO include, among others, long-term care facilities, psychiatric and specialty hospitals, clinic-based settings such as Federally Qualified Health Centers and family planning sites, and community-based healthcare settings.

The changes align New Jersey's guidelines with those of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), which announced last week that it was rescinding its rule requiring most employees of Medicare and Medicaid-certified healthcare providers to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

EO No. 332 was further influenced by the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) recent updates to the Emergency Use Authorizations for COVID-19 vaccines, clarifying that individuals can now receive one dose of the Moderna or Pfizer bivalent mRNA vaccine regardless of their prior vaccination status.

Notwithstanding the new statewide directives, individual employers retain the right to enforce their own vaccination or testing protocols, and the New Jersey Department of Health can continue tracking vaccination data in healthcare settings.

This executive order came into effect immediately upon signing.