State orders COVID vaccines to be widely available
By: Michael L. Diamond
Asbury Park Press
USA today Network - New Jersey
TRENTON - The New Jersey Heath Department on September 9 [2025] issued orders to make the COVID-19 vaccines widely available to state residents without a prescription, pushing back against the Trump administration's recent move to restrict them.
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The announcement removed uncertainly about whether residents would have access to the vaccines as the respiratory illness season looms. But it remains unclear whether their health insurers will cover the cost, expected to be more than $200.
..... "I am committed to ensuring everyone in New Jersey who wants to receive a COVID-19 vacation can receive a dose this fall [2026] from trusted health professionals," Governor Phil Murphy said in a statement.
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The Murphy administration's decision means New Jersey will join other Northeast states, including New York and Pennsylvania, in what has become something of a tug-of-war with the Trump administration.
..... The U.S. Health and Human Services Department, led by Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a vaccine critic, recently rescinded the emergency use authorization for the COVID-19 vaccines, recommending the shot only for people age 65 and older or those with preexisting conditions.
..... The decisions left doctors and pharmacists unclear about whether people outside of those categories could get the shot, even if they want it. In New Jersey, CVS, for example, added a feature on its website that required patients hoping to make an appointment to check a box affirming they were at least 65 years old or had a preexisting condition.
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The state Health Department technically took two steps. It issued an executive directive allowing anyone 6 months or older to get the COVID vaccine. And it issued a standing order that authorized pharmacists to administer the shot without a prescription.
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"This is about equitable access to the COVID-19 vaccine, which has been proven to prevent serious illness and hospitalization," action Health Commissioner Jeff Brown, said in a statement. "Especially as we enter cold and flu season and as students head back to school, New Jerseyans are reminded to stay up to date on all recommended vaccination."
..... The Health Department's orders come as New Heresy has seen COVID cases rise from 683 at the end of July [2025] to 1,446 at the end of August, [2025] the department said
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Doctors and pharmacists are erc3eiving the vaccine as New Jerseyans have become more reluctant to get them. Last year, [2024] just 23% of residents ages 18 and older got the shot, said the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
..... Doctors who recently spoke to the Asbury Park Press said subsequent strains of the virus have been less deadly. and the vaccines weren't without side effects, from mild arm aches to rare heart inflammation.
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But many doctors continue to advise people to get the vaccine, noting that it presents most severe outcomes and can help limit the spread.
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The Health Department made its orders based not on the federal government, but on what it said was clear, scientific and evidence-based recommendations from professional groups such as the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Collage of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the American Academy of Family Physicians, and the Vaccine Integrity Project at the University of Minnesota.
..... Shortly before the Food and Drug Administration revoked its emergency use authorization, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended that children receive the vaccine for the upcoming season, noting that they remain at risk of being hospitalized or dying form the virus.
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The Murphy administration urged health insurers to continue to cover the vaccine with no co-pays, but it order didn't guarantee it.
..... Horizon blue Cross Blue Shield, New Jersey;s biggest helaht insurer, said recently that it was reviewing its vaccine coverage decisions in the aftermath of the FDA's new guidelines, but that it also would look to non-government professional groups for recommendations.
..... "As we navigate an evolving health care landscape maintaining robust immunization coverage continues to be a top priority for protecting both individual and community health," Dr. Joshua Ardise, vice president and chief medical officer for Horizon, said September 3. [2025]