UPDATED: 3:30 p.m.
Murphy said he decided to extend the declaration because it automatically expires after 30 days and the underlying conditions making it necessary haven't changed.
Murphy’s extension was expected. Although conditions are improving, he stressed that New Jersey is far from finished with COVID-19.
“We continue to work to carefully track data and to put in place things we need to have in place to meet the core principles I laid out last week in our road back plan,” he said.
However, an extended declaration doesn’t necessarily mean the stay-at-home order will remain in effect for another month. He said officials just want to keep their options open.
Murphy also announced about 1,500 new positive cases putting the total at about 132,000 along with 308 new deaths, bringing the death toll to 8,549.
In South Jersey, more than 12,000 infections have been confirmed through testing, with 553 turning fatal.
Despite the climbing death toll and increase in positive cases, Murphy said the number of people in hospitals with the virus continued to decline, as did the number of patients on ventilators.
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Meanwhile, the Garden State is also working to make sure farms that use migrant labor have testing and treatment plans in place.
Experts to probe nursing homes
New Jersey is hiring two experts in long-term care to help the state tackle the outbreak in nursing homes, Murphy also announced Wednesday.
The governor is calling in outside experts to deal with three specific issues: “First, to supply immediate support at the Department of Health, specific to long-term care. Second, to conduct a two- to three-week review to address immediate concerns related to protecting long-term care facility residents and staff as we look to restart our economy. And third, to make long-term systemic reform recommendations.”
Cindy Mann, a former deputy administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services in the Obama administration, and Carol Raphael, former CEO of the Visiting Nurse Service of New York, will help support the Health Department, Murphy said.
They'll produce a review of staff and residents at state facilities and recommend what to do in the long term, as well as how to change the state's system.
New Jersey's nursing homes have been hit hard by the virus, with all the state's roughly 400 facilities having at least one positive case, according to Health Commissioner Judy Persichilli.
There are about 23,000 positive cases at facilities across the state, with about 4,300 fatalities, or about half of the statewide total.
Cash tolls
Cash tolls will resume next week on Delaware River Port Authority bridges.
The Ben Franklin, Walt Whitman, Betsy Ross and Commodore Barry bridges went cashless in late March as the coronavirus pandemic spread throughout the region.
But Monday at 6 a.m., cash tolls will resume. Drivers are asked to wear face masks.
Toll collectors will be wearing masks, too, and plastic shields have been added to the booths.
Wildwoods reopening
North Wildwood and Wildwood are reopening the boardwalk, beaches, parks and playgrounds to walkers, runners and bicyclists on Friday.
Each shore town is handling beach restrictions differently. Some aren’t allowing sunbathing, but North Wildwood Mayor Patrick Rosenello said starting Friday, visitors can sit on the beach — as long as the state’s social distancing guidelines are followed.
Many businesses will remain closed for the time being.
“The games, the arcades, the things of that nature — they are not open, as they again fall directly under the governor’s orders," Rosenello said.
So far, there’s no timetable for shops and dine-in restaurants to reopen. In the meantime, a coalition of county officials and business leaders sent the governor a 35-page proposal to slowly reopen the economy.
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