The following is a statement by Governor Phil Murphy in response to the Centers for Disease Control’s  (CDC’s) strong travel advisory warning to the tri-state area after President Donald Trump decided against a quarantine, which he had earlier considered:

“Throughout the day, I’ve been in constant communication with the White House, including discussions with the President and Vice President, who briefed me on tonight’s CDC travel advisory affecting the tri-state region,” said Murphy.

“To be clear, this non-binding advisory guidance does not change the rules that have been established and in place for over a week now under Executive Order 107,” added the New Jersey Governor. “If you have been working as part of our frontline response effort, from health care workers to supermarket workers, we still need you on the job.

“I encourage all New Jerseyans to continue practicing aggressive social distancing and take personal responsibility to help us get through this public health emergency.”

According to a report this evening in The Hill:

The news comes hours after the president said he was considering a short-term quarantine of “hot spots” in parts of the tri-state area of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. These states have fluid populations that travel in and out of New York City, where cases of coronavirus and deaths due to the disease continue to rise at an alarming rate.

In a series of tweets posted by Trump Saturday night, the president noted that after consultation with members of his administration and local leaders, a travel advisory, not an “enforced quarantine” would be the proper measure to take in the region. 

Earlier today, at his daily press briefing, the president broached the idea of a tri-state quarantine.

This via CNN:

“We’re thinking about certain things. Some people would like to see New York quarantined because it’s a hotspot. … We might not have to do it, but there’s a possibility that sometime today we’ll do a quarantine, short-term, two weeks on New York. Probably New Jersey, certain parts of Connecticut,” he told reporters as he departed the White House.

“I’d rather not do it, but we may need it,” the President said.