What to Know
- New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy says more businesses will be able to open later this month.
- Murphy said Monday that restaurants can open for outdoor dining on June 15.
- Barbershops and salons can open on June 22.
Outdoor dining, nonessential retail shops, salons and barbershops will all be opening in the next few weeks as New Jersey slowly restarts its economy in Phase 2 of Gov. Phil Murphy's Road Back from coronavirus closures.
Outdoor dining at restaurants and nonessential in-person shopping can begin again on June 15. Salons and barbershops can open on June 22. Gyms and health clubs will follow, but Murphy didn't give a specific date.
Murphy on Monday announced that with cases slowed, the state will enter Phase 2 of its reopening plans on June 15. Stage 2 will happen over a period of days, Murphy said.
The health department will be issuing guidance in the coming days, Murphy said. Social-distancing measures will be in place in public places.
Murphy is not celebrating yet and cautioned that an increase of cases could change the timetable.
"Over the past several weeks, we’ve been able to to take our first steps on our road back because we stayed true to our guiding principles: Public health creates economic health. Data determines dates," Murphy said Monday while adding a new principle: "common sense for the common good."
Per capita, New Jersey now has move daily COVID-19 testing than any other state, the Democratic governor tweeted Monday.
“We should all take great pride in the rapid build-out of our testing program,” Murphy said. “We’re going to keep expanding testing to promote public health and help restart our economy.”
As testing has increased and positives tests and hospitalizations have slowed in recent weeks, Murphy has slowly lifted restrictions on some businesses in the Garden State.
Moving to Stage 3, which the governor has termed the “new normal,” depends on how the state's trends go.
As of Monday, nearly 796,000 COVID-19 tests had been reported in New Jersey, nearly 161,000 people tested positive for the coronavirus. At least 11,721 people died from coronavirus-related complications. Twenty-seven new deaths were reported Monday.
For most people, the virus causes mild or moderate symptoms that clear up within weeks. Older adults and people with existing health problems are at higher risk of more severe illness or death.
