SENATE BUDGET AND APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO

[First Reprint]

ASSEMBLY, No. 5309

with committee amendments

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED:  JUNE 26, 2025

      The Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee reports favorably and with committee amendments Assembly Bill No. 5309 (1R).

      As amended, the bill requires the State Board of Medical Examiners to include up to three optional credits of educational programs or topics concerning menopause as a condition of biennial registration pursuant to section 1 of P.L.1971, c.236 (C.45:9-6.1).

      The bill provides that the Department of Health is to actively promote awareness of the available menopause and women’s health education programs through various medical associations, healthcare networks, and continuing education platforms.  The Department of Health is to partner with medical schools and nursing schools to integrate menopause education into the curricula, as well as hospitals and professional organizations to integrate menopause and women’s health education into their continuing medical education offerings, ensuring that the training remains relevant and up-to-date with the latest research and best practices.

      Under the bill, the Commissioner of Health is to establish an advisory committee to monitor the effectiveness of the training programs and assess participation and task the committee with making recommendations for public health measures and areas of further research concerning menopause.

      Under the bill, the New Jersey Board of Nursing is to require that the number of credits of continuing education required for advanced practice nurses, as a condition of license renewal, include up to three optional credits of educational programs or topics concerning menopause.

      As amended and reported by the committee, Assembly Bill No. 5309 (1R) is identical to Senate Bill No. 4147, which was also amended and reported by the committee on this date.

COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS:

      The committee amended the bill to:

      (1)  revise the definition of “menopause”;

      (2)  remove a citation to P.L.2021, c.79;

      (3)  require the training modules to be developed by the Department of Health (DOH);

      (4)  require financial assistance to be provided by the DOH from available funds;

      (5)  require the DOH to partner with nursing schools;

      (6)  task the advisory committee with making recommendations for public health measures and areas of further research concerning menopause;

      (7)  extend the provisions of the bill to advanced practice nurses as provided in section 3 of the bill; and

      (8)  revise numbering and the synopsis.

FISCAL IMPACT:

      Fiscal information for this bill is currently unavailable.