SENATE BUDGET AND APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE
STATEMENT TO
[First Reprint]
SENATE, No. 1895
with committee amendments
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
DATED: JUNE 27, 2023
The Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee reports
favorably and with committee amendments Senate Bill No. 1895 (1R).
As amended by the committee, this bill increases Medicaid
reimbursement rates for partial care and intensive outpatient services
by 35 percent. Rates increased under the bill include, but are not
limited to: per diem and hourly reimbursement rates for partial care
and intensive outpatient services, as well as services provided during
partial care and intensive outpatient treatment, such as intake
evaluation, psychiatric evaluation, family counseling, individual
counseling, and group counseling.
The bill also provides that the aggregate Medicaid reimbursement
rate for transportation services and mileage to or from a partial care or
intensive outpatient services provider is to be no less than $10 for each
one-way trip.
As defined under the bill, “partial care services” means
comprehensive, individualized, structured, non-residential intensive
treatment services, including access to psychiatric, medical, and
laboratory services, for an adult with severe mental illness or
substance use disorder provided at a licensed outpatient facility for a
minimum of 20 hours per week. “Intensive Outpatient Services”
means comprehensive, individualized, structured, non-residential
treatment sessions for an adult with severe mental illness or substance
use disorder provided at a licensed outpatient facility for a minimum
of nine hours per week.
COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS :
The committee amendments expand the provisions of the bill
regarding the rate increases for services and transportation to explicitly
include intensive outpatient services. The amendments define
“intensive outpatient services” to mean comprehensive, individualized,
structured, non-residential treatment sessions for an adult with severe
mental illness or substance use disorder provided at a licensed
outpatient facility for a minimum of nine hours per week. 2
The committee amendments revise the definition of partial care
services to make it separate and distinct from the definition for
intensive outpatient services. Under the revised definition, “partial
care services” means comprehensive, individualized, structured, non-
residential intensive treatment services, including access to
psychiatric, medical, and laboratory services, for an adult with severe
mental illness or substance use disorder provided at a licensed
outpatient facility for a minimum of 20 hours per week. As
introduced, the bill defined “partial care services” to mean
comprehensive, individualized, structured, non-residential behavioral
health care and support services for an adult with severe mental illness
or substance use disorder in order to facilitate community integration
and prevent hospitalization and relapse.
The committee amendments clarify that the rate increases under
the bill for intensive outpatient services and partial care services
include, but are not limited to: per diem and hourly reimbursement
rates for partial care and intensive outpatient services, as well as
services provided during partial care and intensive outpatient
treatment, such as intake evaluation, psychiatric evaluation, family
counseling, individual counseling, and group counseling.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Office of Legislative Services (OLS) estimates that this bill
will increase annual State Medicaid expenditures incurred by the
Department of Human Services by $16.2 million, due to the increase
in the Medicaid reimbursement rates for certain partial care behavioral
health services, partial care substance use disorder services, and
intensive outpatient services, as well as for transportation services
provided to Medicaid beneficiaries accessing those services. As
eligible State Medicaid expenditures, these increased costs will grow
annual State revenue in the form of federal Medicaid cost
reimbursements by $10.5 million, for a net State cost of $5.7 million.
This estimate assumes an aggregate federal Medicaid matching rate of
65 percent.