As COVID-19 cases continue to surge across New Jersey, the state’s top health official has been sidelined and forced to self-isolate after being in close contact with a colleague who tested positive for the virus. it was done.
Commissioner Judy Persicili and other staff members will self-quarantine until Dec. 8 and voluntarily work from home, according to a statement issued by the New Jersey Department of Health. .
In the meantime, Persichiri will not attend any face-to-face press conferences or public appearances during the self-isolation period.
The employee who tested positive for COVID-19 was last in the department’s Trenton office last Tuesday. I’ve been self-quarantining at home since then.The state health department’s office has since closed for cleaning.
“We will initiate a contact tracing process and offer testing to close contacts to notify everyone who may have been in contact with a colleague during the potentially infectious period,” the health ministry said in a communication. Director Donna Roysner said.
Persichilli is the latest New Jersey official to self-quarantine after being in close contact with a state employee who contracted COVID-19 during the pandemic.
Gov. Phil Murphy and Mrs. Tammy were forced to self-quarantine in late October after being in contact with two employees who tested positive for the virus. Neither is infected with her COVID-19.
Attorney General Gurbil Grewal was forced to self-isolate earlier this month after being exposed to a staff member infected with coronavirus. , Grew tested negative for the virus after undergoing a PCR test.
New Jersey reported 3,924 new coronavirus infections on Saturday, increasing the statewide total to 330,275 since the pandemic began. Murphy called the recent increase in cases “alarming.”
The state has had 15,136 laboratory-confirmed deaths from COVID-19 since the public health crisis began in March.