LAKEWOOD, NJ – Lakewood Township, a predominantly Orthodox Jewish community in Ocean County is among the lowest vaccinated communities in New Jersey, if not the lowest. Now, Governor Phil Murphy has mobilized his COVID-19 Corps, a group of inner-city high school and college-level volunteers into the community to convince the adult population to get vaccinated.
Armed with clipboards, info sheets, and a wealth of medical knowledge and experience…or at least after watching a one-hour training video, the Murphy “COVID Cops” are trying to convince residents they need to get vaccinated.
“We continue to focus on increasing vaccinations in communities where we see lower rates. We have county ambassadors working with elected officials, local public health, and community groups to increase rates in municipalities right now in 11 counties: Bergen, Burlington, Camden, Essex, Hudson, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Ocean, Passaic, and Union,” Murphy said. “The collaborations are helping to increase rates and providing – it provides also insight into these communities. For example, in New Brunswick, working with leaders in the city and the mayor and in collaboration with our data team, we’ve determined that their coverage is actually over 70% when you give consideration to the number of students living off-campus in New Brunswick who must get vaccinated when they return to Rutgers. Collaboration with local community leaders is key to improving our vaccination rates.”
Many of Murphy’s COVID-19 Corps volunteers are teenagers, now tasked with going into parts of New Jersey to convince residents that it’s in their best interest to get the COVID-19 vaccine.
Last week, Murphy’s COVID cops were seen in New Brunswick, Lakewood and other cities around the state that have been designated as under vaccinated by the Murphy administration.