Legislation to expand insurance coverage for treatment of opioid addiction received final legislative approval from the Assembly yesterday and was quickly signed into law by Gov. Chris Christie.
On Monday, meanwhile, the Senate passed a bill to conduct exit surveys of businesses to better understand why companies leave New Jersey.
Here are the details.
Expansion of Drug Treatment Coverage, A-3/S-3
Passed Assembly Feb. 15 and signed by Gov.
This law will expand health insurance coverage for substance abuse and opioid drug addiction. Specifically, it extends the length of in-patient and out-patient rehabilitation programs that health insurance plans must pay for as part of Christie’s efforts to combat opioid addiction.
The bill received final legislative approval on a rare Wednesday voting session and was signed into law by Gov. Chris Christie within minutes of passing the Assembly.
While drug addiction is clearly a major problem in New Jersey, NJBIA has raised concerns about the cost of the expanded coverage, particularly the impact it will have on premiums and the ability of business owners to provide health benefits to their employees. To better understand the overall cost impact of the bill, NJBIA had requested that it be reviewed by the legislative budget committees.
Business Outmigration Survey, S-1207
Passed Senate Feb. 13
NJBIA position: support
The bill would require the NJ Department of Labor & Workforce Development to survey companies that close or leave the state to find out their specific reasons for ending business here. The survey will include questions about taxes, workforce quality and the cost of conducting business, as well as recent business interaction with government on their problems. A yearly report must be provided to the Governor and the Legislature.
A reliable exit survey on businesses leaving New Jersey would provide a better understanding of the reasons for outmigration. It would build upon NJBIA’s outmigration survey, which focused on the economic impact of taxpayers leaving New Jersey.
The bill now heads to the Assembly.
