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A1981
ASSEMBLY, No. 1981
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
222nd LEGISLATURE
�
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman ANNETTE QUIJANO
District 20 (Union)
Assemblywoman SHANIQUE SPEIGHT
District 29 (Essex and Hudson)
Assemblywoman LUANNE M. PETERPAUL
District 11 (Monmouth)
SYNOPSIS
���� Establishes task force to study and make
recommendations concerning health care service needs of the lesbian, gay,
bisexual, transgendered, and queer or questioning individuals, and persons with
intersex conditions in the State.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.
��
An Act
establishing a task force to study and make
recommendations concerning the health care service needs of the lesbian, gay,
bisexual, transgendered, and queer or questioning individuals, and persons with
intersex conditions in the State.
����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:
���� 1.��� The Legislature finds
and declares that:
���� a.��� Lesbian, gay, bisexual,
transgender, and queer or questioning individuals, and persons with intersex
conditions (LGBTQI) often face challenges and barriers to accessing needed
health care services, and as a result, can experience worse health outcomes than
the general population.
���� b.��� The challenges include
stigmatization, discrimination, daily life stressors, and inequality in the
workplace and health care system because of sexual orientation, gender
identity, and gender expression.
���� c.��� Research has shown that
members of the LGBTQI community experience higher rates of family abandonment
and homelessness, more severe and putative forms of school discipline, greater
contact with the juvenile justice system, and higher rates of poverty and
unemployment than their heterosexual and cisgender counterparts.
���� d.��� Although every expert
medical and psychological organization has asserted that neither same-sex
attraction or cross-gender identification are indicative of mental illness or
psychopathy, members of the LGBTQI community, as a group, experience higher
levels of depression, anxiety, substance abuse, and suicidality than their
non-LGBTQI peers, most likely as a result of the stigma and discrimination
LGBTQI individuals experience in their daily lives.
���� e.��� LGBTQI senior citizens
are less likely to have adult children or extended family who can act as
advocates and caregivers when they fall ill and are need to access health care
services.� As a result, direct engagement between this population of seniors and
health care professionals is extremely important. Yet a significant number of
LGBTQI seniors report delaying or forgoing needed health care because of the
fear of discrimination.�
���� f.���� Members of the LGBTQI
community also have more chronic health conditions and suffer from higher rates
of HIV/AIDS, mental illness, substance abuse, and sexual and physical violence.
���� g.��� In addition to fear of
discrimination and higher rates of illness and violence, some members of the
LGBTQI community are less likely to have health insurance and are more likely
to report unmet health care needs than their heterosexual counterparts.
���� h.��� These disparities stem
from federal and state policies on health insurance coverage and other employee
benefits and the lack of medical professionals trained in providing culturally
competent health care services to LGBTQI individuals.
���� i.���� It is in the public
interest of the State to establish a task force to study and make
recommendations concerning the health care service needs of the State�s LGBTQI
community and to guarantee that all New Jersey citizens, regardless of their
sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression have equal
opportunity to quality health care services.
���� 2.��� a.� There is established
the New Jersey Task Force on Health Care Services for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual,
Transgender, Queer or Questioning, and Intersex Persons in the Department of
Health.
���� b.��� The purpose of the task
force is to develop and issue recommendations concerning the health care
service needs of the State�s LGBTQI community.� The task force shall:
���� (1)� review current State and
federal policies and laws as they relate to health care services provided to
members of the State�s LGBTQI community;
���� (2)� determine what existing
resources are currently being utilized Statewide for the provision of health
care services to members of the LGBTQI community;
���� (3)� examine the quality and
accessibility of existing LGBTQI-related health care services throughout the
State and investigate whether there is a need for improving the quality and
accessibility of such services;
���� (4)� evaluate research and
literature, including any national best practices, professional standards, or
guidelines, concerning the removal of the barriers faced by members of the
LGBTQI community when accessing health care services and obtaining health insurance
coverage;
���� (5)� examine the curricula of
the State�s medical schools and schools of public health to determine whether
they provide instruction on how to address the specific health care needs of
the LGBTQI community; and
���� (6)� develop and issue
recommendations to:
���� (i)�� improve the quality and
accessibility of LGBTQI-related health care services in the State; and
���� (ii)� remove current and
emerging barriers faced by members of the LGBTQI community when accessing
health care services and obtaining health insurance coverage.
���� 3.��� The task force shall
consist of the following nine members:
���� a.��� The Commissioner of
Health or a designee, who shall serve ex-officio;
���� b.��� four members of the
public as follows: a representative of Garden State Equality; a representative
of the New Jersey Hospital Association; a representative of a federally
qualified health center; and a New Jersey resident representing the LGBTQI
community, who shall be appointed by the Governor; and
���� c.��� four members of the
public as follows: one member each who shall be appointed by the Speaker of the
General Assembly, the Senate President, the Minority Leader of the Senate, and
the Minority Leader of the General Assembly.
���� d.��� Vacancies in the
membership of the task force shall be filled in the same manner as the original
appointments.� The members of the task force shall serve without compensation
but may be reimbursed for any expenses incurred by them in the performance of their
duties, subject to the availability of funds.
���� e.��� The task force shall
organize as soon as practicable after the appointment of its members and shall
select a chairperson from among its members.
���� f.���� The Department of
Health task force shall provide professional and clerical staff to the task
force as necessary to carry out its duties.
���� g.��� The task force shall be
entitled to call to its assistance and avail itself of the services of the
employees of any State, county, or municipal department, board, bureau,
commission, or agency as it may require and as may be available to perform its
duties.
���� h.��� The task force shall
report to the Governor and, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164
(C.52:14-19.1), to the Legislature on its findings, recommendations, and
activities no later than one year after the organization of the task force.
���� 4.��� This act shall take
effect immediately and shall expire upon the issuance of the task force report.
STATEMENT
���� This bill establishes the
nine-member New Jersey Task Force on Health Care Services for Lesbian, Gay,
Bisexual, Transgender, Queer or Questioning, and Intersex Persons in the
Department of Health (DOH).
���� The purpose of the task force
would be to develop and issue recommendations concerning the health care
service needs of the State�s LGBTQI community.
���� Specifically, the task force
would: review current State and federal policies and laws as they relate to
LGBTQI-related health care services; determine what existing resources are
currently being utilized Statewide for the provision of health care services to
members of the LGBTQI community, examine the quality and accessibility of those
services, and investigate whether there is a need for improving the quality and
accessibility of such services; evaluate research and literature concerning the
removal of barriers faced by members of the LGBTQI community when accessing
health care services and obtaining health insurance coverage; examine the
current curricula of the State�s medical schools and schools of public health
to determine whether they provide instruction on how to address the specific
health care needs of the LGBTQI community; and develop and issue
recommendations to improve the quality and accessibility of LGBTQI-related
health care services in the State and to remove current and emerging barriers faced
by members of the LGBTQI community when accessing health care services and
obtaining health insurance coverage.
���� The membership of the task
force would include: the Commissioner of Health or a designee; four members of
the public appointed by the Governor representing Garden State Equality, the
New Jersey Hospital Association, a federally qualified health center, and the
LGBTQI community; and four members of the public, one each appointed by the
Senate President, the Speaker of the General Assembly, and the Majority and
Minority Leaders of the Senate and General Assembly.
���� Under the provisions of the
bill: DOH would provide professional and clerical staff to the task force as
necessary to carry out its duties; the task force would report to the Governor
and the Legislature on its findings, recommendations, and activities no later
than one year after its organization of the task force; and the task force
would expire upon the issuance of its report.