Delaware, Alaska added to NJ’s travel restriction list

Self-quarantine advisory stands at 35 states, territories

Daniel J. Munoz//August 18, 2020//

Delaware, Alaska added to NJ’s travel restriction list

Self-quarantine advisory stands at 35 states, territories

Daniel J. Munoz//August 18, 2020//

Listen to this article

For the third time, New Jersey added Delaware to a growing list of states where COVID-19 is raging, and from which travelers should self-quarantine for 14 days after entering the Garden State, as the Murphy administration grapples with recent spread of the virus.

With the addition of Alaska as well, 33 states along with Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands make up the quarantine list, which the governors of Connecticut, New Jersey and New York initially unveiled in June as they aimed to stave off a nationwide rebound of the virus.

All three states were among the hardest hit by the pandemic in March and April. The self-quarantine applies to any state with a positive test rate of 10 per 100,000 residents or a positivity rate higher than 10 percent, both over a seven-day rolling average.

Gov. Phil Murphy makes an announcement about a lease emergency assistance grant program for small businesses on July 23, 2020.
Gov. Phil Murphy makes an announcement about a lease emergency assistance grant program for small businesses on July 23, 2020. – EDWIN J. TORRES/GOVERNOR’S OFFICE

“We cannot allow the tremendous progress we’ve made on our road back to serve as an excuse to let our guard down,” Gov. Phil Murphy said in a Tuesday afternoon statement. “It remains critically important for anyone arriving to New Jersey from these 35 states and territories to get tested for COVID-19 and self-quarantine for 14 days.”

On Monday, the rate of transmission – or how quickly the virus spreads – was 1.03. Anything above 1 means that for every person who gets COVID-19, they spread it to at least one other person. Earlier this month, the rate of spread hovered at just below 1.

The positivity rate among COVID-19 tests was 1.65, which Murphy on Monday called “a really good number.”

Delaware Gov. John Carney told reporters in late July that he was “mad as hell” New Jersey added his state to the list—though Murphy maintained that the move was necessary to keep the pandemic at bay.

In addition to Alaska, Delaware and the two U.S. territories, the other states on the list are Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Iowa, Idaho, Indiana, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, Nebraska, Nevada, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Wisconsin.

Murphy has declined to mandate enforcement of the self-quarantine, even as compliance with it and cooperation with contract tracers have been lackluster in New Jersey.

In New York, failure to provide that cooperate with contact tracing could yield fines up to $2,000, while New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said local authorities will implement checkpoints to ensure compliance from appilcable travelers.

At New Jersey’s airports, primarily Newark Liberty International Airport, travelers from these “COVID-19 hotspot” states are expected to hand over contact information to local health officials who might follow up with them in an effort to prevent outbreaks coming in from over state lines. But, only between 5 and 10 percent of air travelers have actually complied, State Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said earlier this month.