I want to be very clear about how New Jersey arrived at this moment, because what we are seeing now is not an accident, and it is not the result of confusion. It is the result of decisions—some made, and some avoided.
In February and March of 2020, then–Governor Phil Murphy signed Executive Order No. 103, declaring a COVID-19 public health emergency and state of emergency. The intent was appropriate and necessary. New Jersey was facing an unprecedented crisis, and EO-103 became the legal foundation that allowed the healthcare system to survive. Under that authority, Advanced Practice Nurses were permitted to practice with full practice autonomy, clinics stayed open, and access to care was preserved while hospitals were overwhelmed.
Then, that system worked, and subsequently, the State relied on it, providers relied on it, and patients relied on it.
Regardless, emergency authority is not permanent. Under New Jersey law, emergency declarations are structured to expire or transition. Executive Order 103 was always temporary. By law, it should have phased out before 2026—but it didn’t.
Governor Murphy was aware of that reality. And if he was not, then that failure itself deserves scrutiny. Either the Governor knew EO-103 had exceeded its intended lifespan, or he failed to act on a responsibility that directly affected thousands of healthcare providers and small businesses. Neither explanation is acceptable.
What is clear is this: on his final day in office, Governor Murphy signed Executive Order No. 415, rescinding EO-103 and imposing a hard expiration date of February 16, 2026, with a 30-day compliance window. That timing is not coincidental. It was a deliberate act that shifted the consequences of years of inaction onto the next administration—and onto the providers who had operated legally, transparently, and at the State’s request for nearly five years.
The result was immediate chaos.
Small healthcare businesses—many of them woman-owned, minority-owned, and nurse-led—were suddenly told they must restructure ownership, secure physician control that had never been required during the emergency, or shut their doors entirely. These were not unsafe practices. These were not bad actors. These were the same providers New Jersey depended on during its most vulnerable moment.
Governor Mikie Sherrill inherited this crisis on day one.
That matters, because leadership is often revealed not by the problems someone creates, but by how they respond to the problems they inherit. Executive Order No. 7, signed today by Governor Sherrill, is a reassuring and responsible response.
EO-7 places a 90-day pause on the proposal, adoption, and implementation of new state agency rules and regulations. Its purpose is explicit: to allow time for review, assess economic and workforce impacts, and prevent unintended harm to small businesses and essential services during a period of transition.
That language is not generic. It directly addresses the uncertainty now facing APN-led practices.
EO-7 does not retroactively extend emergency authority. No one is asking for that. What it does do—lawfully and intentionally—is create room for administrative discretion, enforcement restraint, and thoughtful review while permanent legislative solutions are developed. That is exactly what responsible governance looks like.
For practices like IVs By The Seas, a small, woman-owned healthcare business founded by a doctorately prepared Advanced Practice Nurse, EO-7 represents something profoundly important: acknowledgment. Recognition that these businesses did not appear overnight. They were built under a state-authorized framework. They employ people. They support families. They provide care. And they deserve continuity—not punishment—for answering the call when New Jersey needed them most.
The threat they face today does not come from new regulation. It comes from an abrupt reversion to an outdated framework, made worse by the compressed timeline imposed at the very end of the prior administration. EO-7 gives the State a chance to interrupt that harm—not by ignoring the law, but by applying it with judgment, proportionality, and care.
There are approximately 1,500 nurse-operated clinics and medspas across New Jersey, and approximately 70% are owned by women. They provide primary care, behavioral health services, women’s health, addiction treatment, and recovery support. If they close, patients do not disappear. They wait longer, travel farther, or end up in emergency rooms that are already stretched thin.
This is not about politics or professional competition. It is about fairness, reliance, and access to care.
New Jersey already tested expanded APN practice under the most demanding conditions imaginable—but they thrived. EO-7 signals that the new administration understands that lesson. It creates a bridge between emergency authority and permanent reform. It gives lawmakers and agencies the chance to align the law with reality, rather than allowing silence and deadlines dictated by outdated deadlines to dismantle what has already proven effective.
Governor Murphy left behind a deadline. Governor Sherrill has responded with leadership.
The solution now is clear: apply EO-7 in a way that protects existing APN-led practices, exercises enforcement restraint during the review period, and advances permanent statutory reform that reflects what New Jersey already knows—that nurses and nurse practitioners are not expendable pawns. They are the cornerstone of this state’s healthcare system.
There is reason to be hopeful. Progress has begun. The choice now is whether New Jersey will finish the work—or allow the damage of the past to define its future.
Links:
IVs By The Seas Website
https://www.ivsbytheseas.com/Executive Order 102:https://www.nj.gov/infobank/eo/056murphy/pdf/EO-102.pdfExecutive Order 112:https://www.nj.gov/infobank/eo/056murphy/pdf/EO-112.pdfExecutive Order 292:https://nj.gov/infobank/eo/056murphy/pdf/EO-292.pdfExecutive Order 415:https://nj.gov/infobank/eo/056murphy/pdf/EO-415.pdfIVs By The Seas Statement:https://www.ivsbytheseas.com/helpSenate Bill S2996:https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/bill-search/2026/S2996Sign Petition:https://www.change.org/p/make-advanced-practice-nurse-expansions-permanent-in-new-jersey?recruiter=1399726772&recruited_by_id=4be3afc0-f55a-11f0-977e-c93b6bd8dc9d&utm_source=share_petition&utm_campaign=starter_onboarding_share_personal&utm_medium=copylink
