Gloucester Twp. COVID Vaccine Site Reopens, Set For 10,000th Shot

GLOUCESTER TOWNSHIP, NJ — After it was closed for two days due to a major nor’easter, the Camden County coronavirus vaccination site at Camden County College has reopened. It reopened on Wednesday, the same day that 116 new cases and 25 new deaths were reported across Camden County.

“Every person who was scheduled to be vaccinated on Monday and Tuesday was rescheduled to today,” Camden County Commissioner Director Louis Cappelli Jr. said during a news conference Wednesday. “It is just an incredible effort and is truly reflective of what’s going on at the facility and reflective of the quality of our team.”

The winter storm that dumped as much as 9 inches of snow on some parts of the township, resulted in the closure of county offices and agencies, including the vaccination site.

“Our guys made sure the site was available today, and it’s working at high efficiency,” said Camden County Commissioner Al Dyer, referring to the county’s public works department.

The site, which opened less than a month ago, is on track to administer its 10,000th shot on Thursday, Cappelli said.

As of Thursday, there have been 36,829 cases of the coronavirus and 961 deaths in Camden County since the pandemic began. Trace investigations are underway in all new cases. The following information is available regarding the most recent coronavirus deaths in Camden County:

• A Cherry Hill man in his 80s;
• A Voorhees man in his 90s;
• A Voorhees man in his 80s;
• A Camden man in his 30s;
• A Pennsauken woman in her 70s;
• A Chesilhurst man in his 80s;
• A Waterford man in his 60s;
• A Gloucester Township man in his 70s;
• A Runnemede man in his 50s;
• A Bellmawr woman in her 90s;
• A Winslow man in his 70s;
• A Berlin man in his 50s;
• A Camden man in his 80s;
• A Pennsauken man in his 90s;
• A Mount Ephraim woman in her 90s;
• A Bellmawr man in his 60s;
• A Collingswood man in his 80s;
• A Camden man in his 80s;
• A Clementon woman in her 50s;
• A Voorhees man in his 50s;
• A Camden man in his 80s;
• A Voorhees man in his 70s;
• A Cherry Hill woman in her 80s;
• A Gloucester City woman in her 80s; and
• A Voorhees man in his 70s.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families as we learned today that 25 additional members of our community have been lost to this pandemic,” Cappelli said. “We are continuing to see a slow but steady fall in the number of new cases each day. With the Super Bowl this weekend, many will be tempted to return to their traditions with big parties and celebrations. Please continue to keep indoor gatherings to a minimum and let’s keep these positive trends going in the right direction.”

Despite Wednesday's fatalities, Cappelli said the county is moving in the right direction, seeing an average of 179 new cases a day. This is down from 300 a day after Christmas and New Year’s.

The four-lane vaccination site is located in the Papiano Gym at Camden County College, 200 College Drive in the Blackwood section of Gloucester Township. It is usually open Monday through Saturday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

It is supported by volunteers from Cooper University Health Care, Jefferson Health — New Jersey, Cooper Medical School of Rowan University, and Rutgers College of Nursing, who will distribute the Moderna Vaccie. To register for a vaccination, visit www.CamdenCountyVaccine.com.

Who is eligible for vaccination at this time?
Currently, vaccines are available to the following groups:
Healthcare Personnel (Phase 1A)
Paid and unpaid persons serving in health care settings who have the potential for direct or indirect exposure to patients or infectious materials, including, but not limited to:

• Licensed healthcare professionals like doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and dentists
• Staff like receptionists, janitors, mortuary services, laboratory technicians
• Consultants, per diem, and contractors who are not directly employed by the facility
• Unpaid workers like health professional students, trainees, volunteers, and essential caregivers
• Community health workers, doulas, and public health professionals like Medical Reserve Corps
• Personnel with variable venues like EMS, paramedics, funeral staff, and autopsy workers
• All workers in acute, pediatric, and behavioral health hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers
• All workers in health facilities like psychiatric facilities, Federally Qualified Health Centers, and rehabs
• All workers in clinic-based settings like urgent care clinics, dialysis centers, and family planning sites
• All workers in long-term care settings like nursing homes, assisted living facilities, group homes, and others
• All workers in occupational-based healthcare settings like health clinics within workplaces, shelters, jails, colleges and universities, and K-12 schools
• All workers in community-based healthcare settings like PACE and Adult Living Community Nursing
• All workers in home-based settings like hospice, home care, and visiting nurse services
• All workers in office-based healthcare settings like physician and dental offices
• All workers in public health settings like local health departments, LINCS agencies, harm reduction centers, and medicinal marijuana programs
• All workers in retail, independent, and institutional pharmacies
• Other paid or unpaid people who work in a healthcare setting, who may have direct or indirect contact with infectious persons or materials, and who cannot work from home.

Long-Term Care Residents and Staff (Phase 1A)
All residents and staff of long-term and congregate care facilities, including:

• Skilled nursing facilities
• Veterans homes
• Group homes like residential care homes, adult family homes, adult foster homes, and intellectual and developmental disabilities group homes
• HUD 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly Program residences
• Institutional settings like psychiatric hospitals, correctional institutions, county jails, and juvenile detention facilities (for eligible minors, e.g. 16+ years of age may be eligible for Pfizer vaccine under the emergency use authorization)
• Other vulnerable, congregate, long-term settings

First Responders (Phase 1B)
Sworn law enforcement, firefighters, and other first responders, including:

• New Jersey State Police troopers
• Municipal and county police officers
• Campus police officers
• Detectives in prosecutors' offices and state agencies
• State agency/authority law enforcement officers (such as State Park Police and Conservation officers, Palisades Interstate Parkway officers, Human Services police, and NJ Transit police)
• Investigator, parole and secured facilities officers
• Aeronautical operations specialists
• Sworn federal law enforcement officers and special agents
• Bi-state law enforcement officers (such as the Port Authority)
• Court Security Officers
• Paid and unpaid members of firefighting services (structural and wildland)
• Paid and unpaid members of search and rescue units including technical rescue units and HAZMAT teams
• Paid and unpaid firefighters who provide emergency medical services
• Paid and unpaid members of Industrial units that perform fire, rescue and HAZMAT services
• Members of State Fire Marshal's Offices
• Bi-state fire service personnel (such as the Port Authority)

Individuals at High Risk (Phase 1B)
Individuals aged 65 and older, and individuals ages 16-64 with medical conditions, as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, that increase the risk of severe illness from the virus. These conditions include:

• Cancer
• Chronic kidney disease
• COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
• Down Syndrome
• Heart conditions, such as heart failure, coronary artery disease, or cardiomyopathies
• Obesity (body mass index [BMI] of 30 kg/m2 or higher but < 40 kg/m2)
• Severe Obesity (BMI ≥ 40 kg/m2)
• Sickle cell disease
• Smoking
• Type 2 diabetes mellitus

Individuals who are pregnant and those in an immunocompromised state (weakened immune system) from solid organ transplant are also eligible but should follow CDC guidance and first discuss vaccination with their medical provider before receiving the vaccine.If you are currently eligible, click here for more information on where to get vaccinated.

Who is eligible for vaccination next?

• Additional frontline essential workers (Phase 1B)
• Other essential workers and people living in congregate settings (Phase 1C)
• General population (Phase 2)

This group was designated as 1B, and will likely be next:

• Foodservice workers
• Port Authority workers
• New Jersey Transit workers
• Teachers, staff, and childcare workers
• Workers who support radio, print, internet and television news and media services
• Other critical workers (CISA)
• Other essential workers

This group was originally designated as 1C:

• People living or working in congregate or overcrowded settings – such as colleges and universities
• People living or working in congregate or overcrowded settings – such as migrant workers
• People living or working in congregate or overcrowded settings - other tribal populations
• Other people at high risk of COVID-19 illness due to comorbidities, occupations, demographics, etc.

NOTE: Vaccination phases are tentative and subject to change. The movement between vaccination eligibility phases may be fluid. One phase may overlap with another. Not all individuals in each phase will be vaccinated before opening to additional groups, and not all groups within a specific phase will be made eligible to receive the vaccine at the same time.

An announcement regarding when additional frontline essential workers and individuals at high risk will be eligible for the vaccine under Phase 1B and Phase 1C will be forthcoming, officials said.