Coronavirus Update
April 8, 2021
Are there travel restrictions to or from New Jersey?
As of April 5, vaccine eligibility has expanded to include additional essential workers, individuals age 55+, and individuals age 16+ with intellectual and developmental disabilities. On April 19, eligibility will expand to include all individuals age 16+
New Jersey continues to strongly discourage all non-essential interstate travel at this time. Unvaccinated travelers and residents returning from any U.S. state or territory beyond the immediate region (New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and Delaware) should self-quarantine at their home, hotel, or other temporary lodging following recommendations from the CDC:
If travel is unavoidable, travelers should consider getting tested with a viral test (not an antibody test) 1-3 days before the trip and again 3-5 days after the trip.
If travelers test positive, they should self-isolate for at least 10 days and should postpone travel during that time If travelers test negative, they should quarantine for a full 7 days after travel.
If testing is not available (or if the results are delayed), travelers should quarantine for 10 days after travel.
You no longer need to quarantine or get tested before/after domestic travel if you are fully vaccinated or have recovered from COVID-19 in the past three months:
It has been more than two weeks since you received your second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine;
It has been more than two weeks since your received your first and only dose of the Janssen/Johnson and Johnson vaccine; or,
You have clinically recovered from COVID-19 in the past three months
Please note that for international travel, the federal requirement for testing upon return to the United States still stands for both unvaccinated and fully vaccinated travelers – additional details are listed below.
The self-quarantine is voluntary, but compliance is expected. Unvaccinated travelers arriving from areas with increasing COVID-19 cases may wish to postpone their travel to the region if they are unwilling or unable to follow the quarantine advisory.
Unvaccinated travelers and those residents who are returning from states and territories beyond the immediate region should quarantine at their home, or a hotel or other temporary lodging. Unvaccinated individuals should leave the place of quarantine only to seek medical care/treatment or to obtain food and other essential items.
We ask that unvaccinated travelers subject to the travel advisory complete a voluntary online survey to provide information about where you are traveling from and your destination.
Access the survey by visiting covid19.nj.gov/njtravel or texting "NJTRAVEL" to 898211.
If you choose to provide this information, it will be shared with local New Jersey Public Health authorities and other third parties when required by law. Local health departments will contact you to remind you to self-quarantine and offer assistance including information about testing locations.
Please note that this advisory does not apply to unvaccinated individuals:
Who are returning to New Jersey after traveling outside of the state for less than 24 hours or those traveling to New Jersey for less than 24 hours - Even where travel is less than 24 hours, however, individuals are still discouraged from engaging in non-essential travel to other states to the extent possible
Who are in transit through the state to another destination, provided that the time spent in the state is only the amount of time necessary to complete the transit, make use of travel services, such as a highway rest stop, or make necessary travel connections
Who are essential personnel or traveling for essential reasons, as defined below
Essential Travel
Essential travel would include, for example:
Individuals traveling to and from the state for work.
Individuals traveling to and from the state for medical reasons, including individuals providing comfort and support to a patient.
Military personnel traveling to the state by order or directive of a state or Federal military authority.
Individuals traveling to comply with a court order, such as child custody.
Essential Personnel
Though all individuals should avoid non-essential travel, essential personnel (also known as critical infrastructure workers) may be exempt from the recommendation to quarantine in limited circumstances. According to guidance from the CDC, "reintegrating exposed critical infrastructure workers who are not experiencing any symptoms and have not tested positive back into onsite operations should be used as a last resort and only in limited circumstances, such as when cessation of operation of a facility may cause serious harm or danger to public health or safety."
For more information on recommendations for critical infrastructure workers, refer to the CDC's Critical Infrastructure Response Planning page.
Testing
Testing is available to everyone in New Jersey and is strongly encouraged for those who travelled to areas heavily impacted by COVID-19. To find a testing site near you, visit covid19.nj.gov/testing. Whenever possible, you are encouraged to quarantine after getting tested while you await your test results.
If you develop symptoms of COVID-19 while under quarantine, you should immediately isolate away from others, contact your healthcare provider and where feasible, get tested for COVID-19. For most persons with COVID-19 illness, isolation and precautions can generally be discontinued 10 days after symptom onset and are fever-free for at least 24 hours, without the use of fever-reducing medications, and with improvement of other symptoms.
International Travel
The CDC is requiring all air passengers entering the United States from a foreign country to provide proof of a negative test for COVID-19 or of recovery from COVID-19. Travelers are required to get tested no more than 3 days before their flight to the U.S. departs and show their negative result to the airline before boarding or be prepared to show documentation of recovery (proof or a recent positive viral test and a letter from a healthcare provider or public health official stating that they were cleared to travel). For more information, visit the CDC website.
In addition, with specific exceptions, foreign nationals who have been in any of the following countries during the past 14 days may NOT enter the United States: China, Iran, countries in the European Schengen Area, United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Brazil, and South Africa. For more details and a full list of exceptions, refer to the CDC's update on travelers prohibited from entry.
International travelers should also refer to guidance published by the CDC and check the CDC's COVID-19 travel recommendations by destination. Many countries are categorized as a Level-4 high COVID-19 risk, and the CDC recommends avoiding all travel to these countries. Visit the CDC for information on testing and international travel.
Stay up to date with the latest COVID-19 news and updates from the State of New Jersey.
Please follow the following link for current information.
https://covid19.nj.gov/faqs/nj-information/travel-and-transportation/are-there-travel-restrictions-to-or-from-new-jersey#direct-link
CDC RELEASES NEW GUIDELINES FOR FULLY VACCINATED PEOPLE
March 9, 2021
Dear Patients
As of March 8, 2021, the Center's for Disease Control (CDC) has released new guidelines for fully vaccinated people. If you have been fully vaccinated:
- You can gather indoors with fully vaccinated people without wearing a mask.
- You can gather indoors with unvaccinated people from one other household (for example, visiting with relatives who all live together) without masks, unless any of those people or anyone they live with has an increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19.
- If you have been around someone who has COVID-19, you DO NOT need to stay away from others or get tested unless you have symptoms.
- However, if you live in a group setting or group home, and are around someone who has COVID-19, you should still stay away from others for 14 days and get tested, even if you don't have symptoms.
TRAVEL GUIDELINES HAVE REMAIN UNCHANGED
Center's for Disease Control (CDC) recommends all travelers get a COVID-19 test 1-3 days before travel.
AFTER TRAVEL: - Get tested with a viral test 3-5 days after AND stay home and self-quarantine for a full 7 days after travel.
- Even if you test negative, STAY HOME and self-quarantine for the FULL 7 days.
- If your test is positive, isolate yourself to protect others from getting infectted.
- If you don't get tested, stay home and self-quarantine for 10 days after ttravel.
- Avoid being around people who are at increased risk for sever illness for 14 days, whether you get tested or not.
The COVID-19 pandemic is a rapidly evolving situation and CDC guidance is updated frequently.
For additional information, visit www.cdc.org.
February 2021
Dear Patients:
We certainly are experiencing the season of winter! With the recent weather we have been having, we hope all of you are Healthy, Safe and Warm!!
As I have said to you all along, it is important to remember that your dental care is a very necessary and vital part of your health and wellbeing. Please do not delay your dental visits. We continue to have strict procedures in place and are doing everything possible to provide you with a safe environment.
I encourage everyone to get the vaccine as soon as you are able to. However, even after you have received the vaccine, I ask you to remain vigilant for your safety and ours by wearing a mask, practicing social distancing and frequently washing your hands. We will continue to provide you with current updates as we move into the warmer months.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact my office to speak to either myself or my staff.
December 2020
As we approach the holidays and the season of winter, I want to first wish all of you a very Healthy and Safe Holiday Season!
As I have said to you all along, it is important to remember that your dental care is a very necessary and vital part of your health and wellbeing. We continue to have strict procedures in place and are doing everything possible to provide you with a safe environment.
One of the latest steps we have taken is the introduction of a fogging system that utilizes Electrolysed Salt Water also known as Hypochlorous Acid (HOCL). HOCL is a highly effective and intrinsically safe, non-toxic, eco-friendly sanitizing agent that is 80 times stronger than bleach and kills bacteria and deactivates viruses in seconds. HOCL has been proven effective in killing the COVID-19 virus and is lethal to all known dangerous bacteria and viruses that exist in our lives today! We are proud to say that HOCL is extremely safe! It will not damage people, furniture, counters, etc. It has numerous medical uses including wound care, eye care and respiratory infections and is being used in hospitals, hotels and restaurants as an anti-viral agent.
In a continuing effort to do everything possible to keep our staff and patients safe at Azar Dental, we will go above and beyond CDC guidelines by using HOCL to fog our treatment rooms, reception area and consultation room after patients leave. This will be an additional measure to greatly reduce any possible risk of contamination. Dentistry has always been at the top of infection control in health care and so once again, we are leading the way!
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact my office to speak to either myself or my staff.
