'Boost NJ Day': New Jersey marks 1 year since 1st COVID vaccine with booster push
Coronavirus Update New Jersey
NEW JERSEY (WABC) -- New Jersey is marking the one-year anniversary of the first COVID-19 vaccinations being administered in the state with a booster push dubbed "Boost NJ Day."
University Hospital nurse Maritza Beniquez was the first person in New Jersey to receive the vaccine, on December 15, 2020.
Now, Governor Phil Murphy is encouraging all who are eligible to get their booster shots amid an alarming uptick in confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus.
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Hospitalizations are up 25% statewide, and new cases are up 20%.
Everyone 16 and older is advised get a booster shot if it has been at least two months since their one-dose Johnson & Johnson shot or at least six months after completing their two-dose Pfizer or Moderna vaccine series.
CDC recommendations allow for so-called mixing and matching boosters, meaning eligible individuals may choose which vaccine they receive as a booster dose.
Some people may have a preference for the vaccine type that they originally received, while and others may prefer to get a different booster.
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State officials say more than 7 million people who live, work or go to school in New Jersey have received at least one vaccine dose, while 6.3 million are considered fully vaccinated.
About 1.7 million booster doses have been administered, a number officials are hoping goes up as a result of the Boost NJ Day push.
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