By Donald Gilpin

With the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updating its  COVID-19 guidelines on February 25 and New Jersey on March 7 lifting its mask mandate for schools and child care centers, school officials, parents, students, and indeed the general population will be wondering in the coming weeks if, when, and where to wear a mask.

Princeton Deputy Administrator for Health and Community Services Jeff Grosser sees this moment as a significant one in the timeline of the COVID-19 pandemic, but he is not encouraging Princeton residents to put away their masks. “We must keep in mind that the masks are one of our forms of defense against respiratory disease spread,” he wrote in a March 1 email.

He continued, “There may be a time where it is recommended, encouraged, or mandated to have individuals mask up again. And as a community we will need to continue to support one another when and if that happens.”

The health department has been working closely with Princeton schools in anticipation of next Monday’s lifting of the mask mandate. “Our guidance will continue to support utilizing community transmission data, along with hospitalization data and updates on emerging variants,” said Grosser.

He went on to point out that Princeton schools are all in different situations based on their case counts and the timing of spring break and other large-scale school events. A common denominator

for schools in determining their mask policies is the overall community transmission rate, which now stands at moderate by New Jersey Department of Health standards and low on the CDC scale.

The new CDC guidelines list eight New Jersey counties at medium rates of transmission and the other 13 counties, including Mercer, are all at low transmission levels. Masks are no longer recommended for people in low and medium transmission counties, according to the CDC.

“Residents may still choose to wear a mask or respirator that offers greater protection in certain situations, such as when you are with people at higher risk for severe illness, or if you are at higher risk for severe illness,” said Grosser.  “It is important to wear a mask or respirator when you are sick or caring for someone who is sick with COVID-19.”

On Monday, February 28, the Princeton Health Department reported 25 new cases in Princeton in the previous seven days, 66 in the previous 14 days, as the Omicron surge continues to decline. The highest numbers of the entire pandemic were recorded just two months ago when there were 287 cases in a seven day period,  568 cases in 14 days.

“We expect cases to continue at this current pace while we continue to monitor news from our regional, state and national epidemiologists on new variants,” Grosser said. “We are maintaining our normal departmental operations with clustered case investigations as they arise.”

Princeton Public Schools reported just seven new cases for the week ending February 25, up slightly from five new cases in the previous week, but much lower than the case numbers from January and early February. 

Princeton University has seen an uptick in case numbers over the past two weeks, with a 2.59 percent positivity rate, mostly undergraduate cases, in the week ending February 25. Most of the students who tested positive were experiencing mild symptoms, according to University officials.

The Princeton Health Department will be hosting COVID-19 vaccine clinics on Wednesdays, March 2,16, and 30, at the Princeton Senior Center, 45 Stockton Street, 3:30 to 5:30 p.m.

Princeton University COVID vaccine clinics will take place on Wednesdays, March 2 and 16, in Jadwin Gym, 1 to 4 p.m.

Free COVID-19 testing locations include the Princeton Pop-Up Clinic, 237 N. Harrison Street, Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturday,10 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Princeton Elks Lodge, 354 County Road 518 in Skillman on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Tuesdays and Thursdays, 12 p.m. to 8 p.m., and Saturdays 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.; and the CURE Insurance Arena, 81 Hamilton Avenue, Trenton, Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

At-home test kits are available at covidtests.gov and learn.vaulthealth.com/nj. Visit covid19.nj.gov or vaccines.gov for further information about vaccines, testing and other clinics in the area.

In his monthly message to the community, Mercer County Executive Brian M. Hughes acknowledged the heavy toll that the pandemic had taken on area residents, but noted that “the prospects for a closer-to-normal spring and summer look good” and expressed hope that “we can start getting back to doing things we enjoy.”

“As we approach the two-year anniversary of the first reported cases of COVID-19 in New Jersey and in Mercer County, there is no denying that the virus has exacted a heavy toll on all our communities,” he wrote, citing the COVID-19-related deaths of 1,179 Mercer County residents and 29,840 New Jersey residents, and “countless other lives that have been disrupted due to illness, closures, cancellations, and pandemic fatigue.”