Gov. Phil Murphy says COVID-19 data shows positive trends and he could give reopening dates soon.

 

At his daily news conference Monday, Gov. Phil Murphy did not specify when he would present a timeline for reopening, just saying later this week "assuming the curves keep going in the right direction."

Gov. Murphy credited the flattening of the curve to residents social distancing.

 

"We are getting data that is making us more comfortable and confident that we will soon have some hard dates as to when we can truly begin our road back through restart and recovery,” says Gov. Murphy. “But remember, as I am able to give some hard dates, remember that you all did this out there through your hard work over the past nearly two months."

The governor says at today's conference, he will be discussing two of the key points in his plan for reopening -- more widespread testing and contact tracing.

Gov. Murphy says the percentage of people testing positive for COVID-19 is about 26%, down from a high near 50% last month. Hospitalizations from the virus are also down, as are the number of people in intensive care and on ventilators.