City of Montclair Township

Essex County Emergency Food Distribution Event

Essex County will hold a food distribution event on Thursday, April 15, at Essex County Weequahic Park

DATE: Thursday, April 15
TIME: 9:00 a.m.
LOCATION: Essex County Weequahic Park Meeker Avenue Entrance Newark

The food distribution event will be held RAIN or SHINE.

INSTRUCTIONS:

• Enter Weequahic Park via the Meeker Avenue entrance.
• Cars should line up along Elizabeth Avenue before turning right onto Meeker Avenue and then turning right into Weequahic Park.
• No left turns allowed from Meeker Avenue into Weequahic Park.
• Drivers should remain in their cars with the windows rolled up.
• A walk-up distribution will be located adjacent to the parking lot. People walking to the site must wear a face mask.
• No arrivals before 8:00 a.m.
• 500 boxes to be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis.

More distribution events coming each week.

COVID-19 TESTING

MedRite Test Site

MedRite is now providing COVID-19 test at 50 South Park Street.

Testing is available Monday-Thursday 9:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.; Friday, Saturday, 9:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. MASKS ARE REQUIRED.

MedRite staff will collect patient information on-site. Patients must bring a health insurance card and photo I.D. Patients receive rapid test results within an hour and PCR lab tests within 24-72 hours after reaching the lab.

All testing is at no cost to the patient and covered by insurance. For more information on testing, please contact MedRite at info@onsitecovid19testing.com. For questions directed to the YMCA of Montclair, please contact Lisa Kievit, Senior Membership Director at 973-559- 9281 or email lkievit@montclairymca.org.

Upcoming Essex County COVID-19 Testing Locations and Dates

800 Tests Available Each Day

• Tuesday, April 6, 3:30 to 6:30 p.m., Essex County Hall of Records Complex, Employee Parking Deck, 50 West Market Street, Newark
• Saturday, April 10, 8:00 a.m. to 12 noon, Essex County Department of Public Works, 99 West Bradford Avenue, Cedar Grove

Additional dates will be announced.

• Essex County residents with or without symptoms are encouraged to get tested.
• Residents age 8 years and older are welcome to get tested.
• Residents are encouraged to get retested if they have taken the swab or saliva tests 14 days ago or more and have received negative test results.
• Testing is provided free of charge; health insurance is not required.

To schedule a test call 973-877-8456 or go to: www.essexcovid.org. You will be required to complete a short questionnaire. When finished, you will be provided with an appointment time and a confirmation number. Residents should bring the confirmation number with them. We ask that you arrive 15 minutes before their scheduled appointment.

COVID-19 Vaccine

Download the COVID-Vaccine Overview brochure

Currently scheduling the following populations for the COVID019 vaccine:

Healthcare workers in contact with infected patients or infectious materials and people who are at a higher risk of severe COVID-19 illness.

AND

Paid or unpaid persons working or volunteering in a healthcare setting who may have direct or indirect contact with infectious persons or materials, for example:

• Doctors, nurses, pharmacists, dentists, physical therapists, occupational therapists and any other licensed or registered professionals
• Healthcare support Staff in areas like facilities management, security, food services, environmental services, administrative services, human resources, reception, language services, IT, laboratory and other health care support areas.
• Community health workers, promotoras, home health aides, visiting nurses, doulas, health educators, and public health professionals.
• Those working at vaccination sites, including trainees, students, volunteers, vaccinating site staff and contractors.
• Those who work in correctional or youth detention settings.
• Uniformed police officers and firefighters.
• Other personnel like EMS, paramedics, funeral staff, mortuary staff and autopsy workers.

AND

• Individuals ages 65 and older.
• Persons 18-64 with high-risk medical conditions.

Vaccine Timeline

The first doses of the COVD-19 vaccine will be available in limited quantities on or about December 26. Essex County will be distributing the Moderna vaccine. The Moderna vaccine is a 2-dose vaccine; each dose is separated by approximately 28 days (4 weeks).

The vaccine will be administered according to the NJ State Department of Health’s guidelines in the following order:

• Frontline healthcare workers (those who are regularly directly exposed to coronavirus) will be first to receive the vaccine.
• As more doses become available, other critical populations will then receive vaccinations including, but not limited to, those living in group settings, high-risk adults, first responders, funeral home workers, education and child care workers, and other essential frontline workers.
• After critical populations are vaccinated, vaccinations will be available for the general public.

For more information about the phased approach and priority groups, refer to this NJ Health Department document.

Vaccine Appointments & Information

• To schedule a vaccine, you must make an appointment by calling 973-877-8456 or by visiting EssexCOVID.org.
• Appointments are subject to availability of the vaccine. We will provide regular updates on vaccine availability status on EssexCOVID.org.
• The vaccine requires two doses. When you sign-up, you will receive two appointments. It is critical that you attend both appointments.
• Residents will be asked to provide their medical insurance information and their insurance provider will be billed. If a resident does not have insurance, the cost of the vaccine will be covered by the Health Resources and Services Administration's Provider Relief Fund. There will be no out-of-pocket expenses charged to residents.

Essex County Vaccination Centers

The five locations and the municipalities assigned to each of them are as follows:

• Former Kmart building, 235 Prospect Avenue, West Orange: West Orange, Cedar Grove, Essex Fells, Montclair, Newark, Nutley and Verona.
• Essex County College, 303 University Avenue, Newark (Gym entrance on West Market Street): Newark, East Orange and Irvington.
• Essex County Donald M. Payne, Sr. School of Technology, 498-544 West Market Street, Newark: Newark, East Orange and Irvington.
• Livingston Mall, former Sears building, 112 Eisenhower Parkway, Livingston (Entrance is in the back): Livingston, Belleville, Maplewood, Millburn, Newark, Orange and South Orange.
• Essex County West Caldwell School of Technology, 620 Passaic Avenue, West Caldwell: West Caldwell, Bloomfield, Caldwell, Fairfield, Glen Ridge, Newark, North Caldwell and Roseland.

Updates will be provided as they become available.

COVID-19: Health Actions to Protect You and Your Family

The New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH) provides a chart with information to help people determine actions to take based on their health status and symptoms.

According to NJDOH people with mild illness do not necessarily need to be tested for COVID-19. Contact your health care provider for more information based on your personal health history.

Download the NJDOH COVID-19: Health Actions to Protect You and Your Family chart.

Proper Disposal of Masks and Latex Gloves

The recycling facility that receives and processes Montclair’s recycling has reported receiving a large amount of latex gloves and masks in the recycling loads.

MASKS AND LATEX GLOVES ARE NOT CONSIDERED HOUSEHOLD RECYCLING.

THEY MUST BE DISPOSED OF AS TRASH.

For the sake of the health of recycling facility crews who must remain healthy to continue this essential service, please dispose of these items properly – IN THE TRASH.

We all need to work together with our Health Department staff to slow the spread of COVID-19.

• Now that we’ve worked together to flatten the curve, it’s time to slow the spread of COVID-19.
• Be part of the solution to slow the spread.
• Help the Health Department slow transmission in our community.

Your actions make all of us safer. Public health workers are here to help slow the spread of COVID-19.

If you are diagnosed with COVID-19, a case investigator from the Health Department might call you to check-in on your health, discuss who you’ve been in contact with and ask you to stay at home to self-isolate.

• Unless you give permission, your name will not be revealed to those you came in contact with, even if they ask.
• The Health Department will ask you to stay at home and self-isolate.
  • Self-isolation means staying at home in a specific room away from other people and pets, and using a separate bathroom, if possible.
  • Self-isolation is critical to protecting those you live with as well as your community.
  • Self-isolation helps slow the spread of COVID-19 and can help keep your friends and neighbors healthy.
  • If you need support or assistance while self-isolating, then the Health Department or community organizations may be able to provide assistance.
• Seek medical care if symptoms become severe. Severe symptoms include trouble breathing, persistent pain or pressure in the chest, confusion, inability to wake or stay awake, or bluish lips or face.

If you have been in close contact with someone with COVID-19, a case investigator from the Health Department might call to inform you that you’ve been exposed. They will ask you to stay at home and self-quarantine.

• Close contact means you were within 6 feet of an infected person for at least 10 minutes.
• You should stay at home and self-quarantine for 14 days, starting from the most recent day that you were possibly exposed to COVID-19. The contact tracer will inform you of the dates of your self-quarantine.
  • Self-quarantine means staying home, monitoring yourself, and maintaining social distancing (at least 6 feet from others at all times). You should remain in a specific room separate from other non-exposed people and pets in your home, and use a separate bathroom, if possible.
  • If you need to be around other people or animals in or outside of the home, wear a cloth face covering. This will help protect the people around you.
  • If you need support or assistance with self-quarantine, then your health department or community organizations may be able to provide assistance.
  • Self-quarantine helps slow the spread of COVID-19 and can help keep your friends and neighbors healthy.
• You should monitor yourself for any symptoms of COVID-19 and notify your health department if you develop symptoms. Seek medical care if symptoms become severe. Severe symptoms include trouble breathing, persistent pain or pressure in the chest, confusion, inability to wake or stay awake, or bluish lips or face.

Key Actions

• Pick up the phone when a Health Department employee calls.
• Follow Health Department guidance.
• Notify your healthcare provider if you become ill.
• Call your healthcare provider if you start to feel ill and you have not been tested for COVID-19.
• If you have been in close contact with someone with COVID-19, you should stay at home and self-quarantine for 14 days, starting from the most recent day that you were possibly exposed to COVID-19. Monitor yourself, and maintain social distancing (at least 6 feet) from others at all times.
• Notify those who you had close contact with recently if you become ill.
• Know what symptoms mean you need to go to the hospital right away.
• Seek medical care if symptoms become severe. Severe symptoms include trouble breathing, persistent pain or pressure in the chest, confusion, inability to wake or stay awake, or bluish lips or face.

The bottom line: Making a choice to help the Health Department in the fight against COVID-19 keeps you, your family, and our community safe.