NJ Return Home Program Nears End

TRENTON — The Christie Administration’s practice of requiring developmentally disabled people getting subsidized care out-of-state to return to New Jersey would end under a bill approved unanimously by the State Assembly on Thursday.

The bill to end the state’s “Return Home New Jersey” program was passed by a vote of 79-0 with one seat vacant. Having already drawn Senate approval, it is expected to be signed by Governor Christie, because it is the product of negotiation between the Democratic majority and the administration, said a spokeswoman for the Democratic majority.

The state Department of Human Services’ Division of Developmental Disabilities, noting the ongoing growth of supportive housing for the disabled, states the goal of “Return Home New Jersey” has been to return individuals “to a comparable or better setting in New Jersey … and to better manage the state resources that serve the community of nearly 29,000 people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in New Jersey.”

Editorial: Republican Govs Rethink Obamacare

Tennessee, like most states led by Republican governors, was so adamantly opposed to Obamacare that it rejected the money Washington offered to expand Medicaid coverage.

Now Gov. Bill Haslam is having second thoughts. He has watched several hospitals in his state close down because they could not afford the care they provided to the poor and uninsured. Even the hospitals that survived are taking a hit.

So now the governor is calling a special session of the state’s Legislature in January to reverse course.

Higher Payments May Prompt More New Jersey Doctors to Accept Medicaid Patients

A two-year project is under way to encourage primary care doctors to accept Medicaid-eligible patients by paying for many services at the same level as Medicare.
Many poor or disabled patients have limited access to healthcare because so few doctors have been willing to accept the low Medicaid reimbursement rates.
The federal government will cover the difference between Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements for 146 primary-care services from Jan. 1 through the end of 2014. The increased payments will be made to family physicians, pediatricians and internal medicine doctors who specialize in primary care.

Opinion: N.J. Needs More Community-Based Care

In this year’s budget address, Gov. Chris Christie said, “New Jersey has the second-highest rate of institutionalization in America. ... This is a shameful fact. We must change. It’s long overdue. We must move aggressively to provide this type of care in the community.”
Staying true to his commitment, Gov. Christie committed more than $40 million in this year’s budget to programs and services to support moving individuals with developmental disabilities who live in institutions to community residences. Additionally, he signed legislation to create a Task Force on the Closure of State Developmental Centers and charged it with selecting one or more for closure. In late July, the task force issued its binding recommendation to close the North Jersey Developmental Center in Totowa and the Woodbridge Developmental Center within five years and move residents who are able to community-based options.

N.J. Assembly to Hold Hearing on Cuts

TRENTON, N.J. –- As part of Democrats’ effort to highlight the impact of Gov. Chris Christie's cuts programs benefiting New Jersey's middle-class and poor, the Assembly Budget Committee will meet next Tuesday to hear testimony how the cuts affect programs that serve children.
"Gov. Christie's cuts hit working class New Jerseyans hard across the board, but his cuts to vital programs for children are among the harshest anyone has ever seen," said Assembly Budget Chairman Lou Greenwald (D-Camden). "The impact of these cuts demand immediate attention, and we're committed to trying to find a way to make sure these programs continue to serve children suffering through horrific cases of abuse, illness and poverty."

HMOs Await Medicaid Recipients in N.J.

I'm probably in the minority, but I don't believe that government has the right to tell people what doctors they can and can't see. Perhaps that's why the Medicaid Reform committee in New York State and others are recommending the Patient-Centered Medical Home for individuals with developmental disability. This model of care ensure coordinated care with members of a health care team, which includes not only the doctors, specialists and other clinicians but the patients and their families.

TRENTON, N.J. — Not content to wait for the state budget to pass in late June, the Department of Human Services is alerting about 200,000 Medicaid recipients — many with developmental or mental disabilities — that they will be required to enroll in an HMO.
Gov. Chris Christie's administration anticipates the move will save about $41 million over the budget year that begins July 1.
But at least one advocacy group is worried people with complicated medical histories will be forced to find new doctors or new drugs, disrupting their care.

N.J. Assemblywoman Seeks Impact Study Prior to Closing Developmental Center

TRENTON, N.J. -- Gov. Chris Christie should halt any plans to close the Vineland Developmental Center in Cumberland County until a new legislative panel has studied the impact on its disabled residents, the chairwoman of the Assembly Human Services Committee announced today.
In a letter to Human Services Commissioner Jennifer Velez who oversees state institutions, Assemblywoman Valerie Vainieri Huttle (D-Bergen) questioned the administration's recent transfer of 59 Vineland residents. Two-thirds of them were sent to one of the six other institutions serving people with developmental disabilities while the remaining residents moved into community housing.