ASSEMBLY AGING AND HUMAN SERVICES COMMITTEE
STATEMENT TO
ASSEMBLY, No. 2804
with committee amendments
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
DATED: MARCH 14, 2024
The Assembly Aging and Human Services Committee reports favorably and with committee amendments Assembly Bill No. 2804.
As amended, the bill requires the Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services (division) in the Department of Human Services and the State Board of Medical Examiners, within 365 days of its effective date, to develop and implement a process to improve the efficiency of reviewing NJ FamilyCare provider applications which is to include the State Board of Medical Examiners sharing information with the Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services regarding physician licensure applicants who apply to enroll as NJ FamilyCare providers.
To effectuate this goal, at a minimum, the State Board of Medical Examiners is to make available to the division the applicant’s license number, within five days of issuing the license number to the applicant. If the applicant is denied licensure, the bill directs the State Board of Medical Examiners to notify the division within five days of the final determination.
Moreover, to the extent possible and in accordance with the documentation submitted with the NJ FamilyCare provider application, the Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services is required to immediately begin to process each NJ FamilyCare provider application upon receipt of the application, provided that the application contains the necessary licensure information or demonstrates that the applicant is pending licensure approval from the State Board of Medical Examiners. Within 15 days of receiving an applicant’s license number from the State Board of Medical Examiners, the division shall notify an applicant in writing, if applicable, of any additional information or documentation required by the division to enroll the applicant as an approved NJ FamilyCare physician.
The bill explicitly provides that the provisions of the bill are not to be construed to alter the application requirements for State licensure or the enrollment requirements for a NJ FamilyCare provider, or to require the Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services to approve an applicant for NJ FamilyCare provider enrollment before the division has received the National Provider Identifier number for the applicant.
This bill was pre-filed for introduction in the 2024-2025 session pending technical review. As reported, the bill includes the changes required by technical review, which has been performed.
COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS
The committee amended the bill to clarify that the process established by the Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services and the State Board of Medical Examiners is to include information sharing regarding licensure applicants who apply to enroll as NJ FamilyCare providers, instead of information sharing regarding applicants who indicate an intent to apply, as originally provided in the bill.
The committee amendments require that the State Board of Medical Examiners notify the division within five days of a final determination of a denial of licensure, instead of providing the division with appropriate documentation of the denial, as originally provided in the bill.
The committee amended the bill to require that within 15 days of receiving an applicant’s license number from the State Board of Medical Examiners, the division is to notify an applicant in writing, if applicable, of any additional information or documentation required by the division to enroll the applicant as an approved NJ FamilyCare physician, instead of 10 days as originally provided in the bill.
The committee amendments make various technical corrections to the bill involving grammar and syntax.