Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman AURA K. DUNN
District 25 (Morris and Passaic)
SYNOPSIS
Establishes initiatives related to behavioral health care, including increasing reimbursement rates, providing cost-of-living adjustments, establishing grant programs for facility upkeep and provider training, and relaxing clinical supervision requirements.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning behavioral health care and supplementing Title 30 and Title 45 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. As used in sections 1 through 3 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill):
"Behavioral health service" means a procedure or service rendered by a behavioral health professional for the treatment of mental illness, emotional disorders, or substance use disorder.
"Behavioral health professional" means a physician, a physician assistant or advanced practice nurse with a specialty in behavioral health care, a clinical social worker, a social worker, a marriage and family therapist, a professional counselor, an associate counselor, a rehabilitation counselor, a clinical mental health counselor, a licensed or certified alcohol and drug counselor, a psychologist, or a psychoanalyst.
"Department" means the Department of Human Services.
"Medicaid" means the Medicaid program established pursuant to P.L.1968, c.413 (C.30:4D-1 et seq.).
2. a. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the terms of a contract entered into between the Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services in the Department of Human Services and a residential behavioral health service provider on or after the effective date of this act shall include an annual increase in the cost of living adjustment received by the residential behavioral health service provider. The cost of living adjustment shall be based on the Consumer Price Index for the previous 12-month period beginning October 1 and ending September 30, as published by the United States Department of Labor.
b. On October 1 of each year, the department shall announce the rate of the increase in the cost of living adjustment received by residential behavioral health service providers.
3. There is established in the Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services in the Department of Human Services a revolving, non-lapsing fund to be known as the "Residential Behavioral Health Care Access and Improvement Fund," which fund shall be the repository for monies appropriated or otherwise made available for the purpose of providing grants to residential behavioral health service providers to support routine repairs and maintenance in residential behavioral health service facilities. The Assistant Commissioner of Mental Health and Addiction Services in the Department of Human Services shall develop procedures for residential behavioral health service providers to apply for, and for the division to award, grants from the fund for the purpose of offsetting the cost of repairs and maintenance in residential behavioral health service provider facilities. In addition, the assistant commissioner shall develop and enforce appropriate safeguards to ensure grants awarded from the fund are used exclusively for the purposes outlined in this section.
4. a. As used in this section:
"Behavioral health service" means a procedure or service rendered by a behavioral health professional for the treatment of mental illness, emotional disorders, or substance use disorder.
"Behavioral health professional" means a physician, a physician assistant or advanced practice nurse with a specialty in behavioral health care, a clinical social worker, a social worker, a marriage and family therapist, a professional counselor, an associate counselor, a rehabilitation counselor, a clinical mental health counselor, a licensed or certified alcohol and drug counselor, a psychologist, or a psychoanalyst.
"Medicaid" means the Medicaid program established pursuant to P.L.1968, c.413 (C.30:4D-1 et seq.).
"Medicare" means the federal Medicare program established pursuant to Pub.L.89-97 (42 U.S.C. s.1395 et seq.).
b. Commencing on July 1, 2024, and annually thereafter, the Medicaid reimbursement rate for residential behavioral health services shall be no less than 100 percent of the payment rate that applies to such services under part B of Medicare.
c. For the purposes of this section, residential behavioral health services shall include behavioral health services furnished in a residential or inpatient health care setting by a health care provider.
d. The provisions of this section shall not be construed to require any decrease in the Medicaid reimbursement rate for a residential behavioral health service from the previous fiscal year's reimbursement level for the same service.
e. The provisions of this section shall apply to residential behavioral health services:
(1) reimbursed under the Medicaid fee-for-service delivery system or through the Medicaid managed care delivery system, and
(2) delivered by an approved Medicaid provider.
f. No later than July 1, 2026, and annually thereafter, the Commissioner of Human Services shall submit a report to the Governor, and to the Legislature pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), providing information on the implementation of this section, including data indicating any changes in access to residential behavioral health services or in the quality of behavioral health services for Medicaid beneficiaries following any rate increases required under this section. The report shall include recommendations for additional enhancements to the Medicaid rates for behavioral health services to improve access to providers and quality of care for Medicaid beneficiaries in underserved areas of the State.
5. a. As used in this section:
"Behavioral health service" means a procedure or service rendered by a behavioral health professional for the treatment of mental illness, emotional disorders, or substance use disorder.
"Behavioral health professional" means a physician, a physician assistant or advanced practice nurse with a specialty in behavioral health care, a clinical social worker, a social worker, a marriage and family therapist, a professional counselor, an associate counselor, a rehabilitation counselor, a clinical mental health counselor, a licensed or certified alcohol and drug counselor, a psychologist, or a psychoanalyst.
"Director" means the Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety.
b. There is established in the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety a grant program to assist in the training of behavioral health service professionals, expand the pipeline of high-quality, trained professionals, and address shortages in the behavioral health care workforce.
c. Grants under the program shall be awarded on a competitive basis to entities with internship programs in behavioral health care and entities seeking to establish internship programs in behavioral health care, which grants shall be used by the entities to compensate interns for their time participating in the internship program, compensate program instructors for their time providing supervision to interns participating in the internship program, and foster the development of additional behavioral health care internship slots and new behavioral health care internship programs.
d. To be eligible for consideration of a grant award under the program, an entity with an internship program in behavioral health care or that is seeking to establish an internship program in behavioral health care shall submit an application to the director, in accordance with application procedures and requirements prescribed by the director. At a minimum, a grant application submitted pursuant to this subsection shall include the following:
(1) details concerning the applicant's current internship program, if any, including the types of behavioral health service professionals participating in the internship program, the total number of internship slots available under the program, whether interns are paid while participating in the program and the amount they are paid, if applicable, and the overall number of applications to participate in the internship program that were submitted in the preceding academic year;
(2) details concerning the purposes for which the applicant intends to use grant funds;
(3) details concerning the amount the applicant is requesting in grant funds;
(4) the applicant's objectives with regard to expanding internship opportunities and expanding the behavioral health care workforce through a grant awarded under the program;
(5) the applicant's plans to collaborate with federal, State, regional, and local entities to expand the pipeline of behavioral health service professionals both locally and Statewide; and
(6) any other information as required by the director.
e. The director shall establish:
(1) selection criteria for awarding grants under the program, including consideration of the information submitted with an application pursuant to subsection d. of this section;
(2) requirements for determining the amount for each grant award, which shall be based upon review of the applications submitted and the availability of funds; and
(3) appropriate safeguards to ensure grants awarded under the program are used exclusively for the purposes outlined in this section and consistent with the purposes outlined in the awardee's grant application.
f. The director shall annually apply for and use any federal grant funds or other federal assistance which may be available to be used for the grant program established pursuant to this section and may, if applicable, apply for federal grant funds or other federal assistance on behalf of one or more entities approved for participation in the grant program. In awarding grants under the program, the director shall expend available federal funds before expending State funds.
g. Within three years after receiving a grant award under the program, the entity awarded the grant shall submit a report to the director concerning the entity's use of the grant funds. The report shall include, at a minimum, information on the number of interns and internship program instructors receiving compensation using the grant award, the number of new internship slots created and supported using the grant award, the number of interns who successfully completed the internship program and the number of interns who left the internship program prior to completion, the number of interns who became employed as behavioral health professionals within 12 months of completing the internship program, and any notable changes in behavioral health intern and instructor recruitment, retention, and employment rates following the award of the grant.
h. Commencing four years after the effective date of this act, and annually thereafter, the director shall submit a report to the Governor, and to the Legislature pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), concerning the implementation of the grant program established pursuant to this section. The report shall include, but shall not be limited to, information on the number of grant applicants, the number and amounts of grants awarded, information provided by entities awarded grants under the program in the reports submitted pursuant to subsection g. of this section, and any recommendations concerning the continuation or expansion of the grant program.
6. For the purposes of meeting clinical supervision requirements for licensure as a clinical social worker, professional counselor, or marriage and family therapist, the Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety shall authorize licensed clinical social workers, licensed professional counselors, and licensed marriage and family therapists to each provide clinical supervision to candidates for licensure as a clinical social worker, professional counselor, or marriage and family therapist. An applicant for licensure as a clinical social worker, as a professional counselor, or as a marriage and family therapist who otherwise meets the requirements for licensure shall be issued the requisite license regardless of whether the applicant completed the clinical supervision requirements for licensure under the supervision of a licensed clinical social worker, a licensed professional counselor, or a licensed marriage and family therapist.
7. a. The Commissioner of Human Services shall adopt rules and regulations, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), to effectuate the provisions of sections 1 through 4 of this act.
b. The Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety shall adopt rules and regulations, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), to effectuate the provisions of sections 5 and 6 of this act.
8. The Commissioner of Human Services shall apply for such State plan amendments or waivers as may be necessary to implement the provisions of sections 1 through 4 this act and to secure federal financial participation for State Medicaid expenditures under the federal Medicaid program.
9. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill establishes certain initiatives related to behavioral health care, including increasing Medicaid reimbursement rates, providing cost-of-living adjustments for residential behavioral health care facilities, establishing grant programs for facility upkeep and provider training, and relaxing clinical supervision requirements for certain professionals.
Specifically, the bill requires that contracts between the Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services in the Department of Human Services (DHS) and residential behavioral health service providers are to include an annual cost of living increase adjustment based on the Consumer Price Index for the previous 12-month period.
The bill establishes, in the Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS) in the DHS, the "Residential Behavioral Health Care Access and Improvement Fund," which will be dedicated to providing grants to residential behavioral health service providers to support routine repairs and maintenance.
The bill provides that, commencing on July 1, 2024, the Medicaid reimbursement rate for residential behavioral health services is to equal to the payment rate that applies under Medicare Part B. The Commissioner of Human Services will be required to submit an annual report to the Governor and the Legislature concerning the increased reimbursement rate, including changes in access to services or in the quality of services for Medicaid beneficiaries resulting from the rate increase, as well as recommendations for additional enhancements to the Medicaid rates.
The bill establishes a grant program in the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety to assist in the training of behavioral health service professionals, expand the pipeline of high-quality, trained professionals, and address shortages in the behavioral health care workforce. Grants under the program will be awarded on a competitive basis to entities with or seeking to establish internship programs in behavioral health care, which grants are to be used to compensate interns and instructors participating in the internship program and foster the development of additional behavioral health internship slots and programs. Grant awardees will be required to report to the Division of Consumer Affairs concerning the use of grant funds, and the division will be required to submit an annual report to the Governor and the Legislature concerning the grant program.
The bill provides that, for the purposes of meeting clinical supervision requirements, applicants for a clinical social worker or professional counselor licensure may be supervised by either a licensed clinical social worker or a licensed professional counselor. Current law requires these applicants to be supervised by an individual holding the same license as the applicant is seeking.