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A4337 • 2026

Requires each nursing home to employ patient advocate.

Requires each nursing home to employ patient advocate.

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
Speight, Shanique
Last action
2026-02-19
Official status
Introduced, Referred to Assembly Aging and Human Services Committee
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

Requires each nursing home to employ patient advocate.

Requires each nursing home to employ patient advocate.

What This Bill Does

  • Requires each nursing home to employ patient advocate.
  • Topic: Aging and Human Services Fiscal note: This bill has not been certified by OLS for a fiscal note.

Limits and Unknowns

  • This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Bill History

  1. 2026-02-19 New Jersey Legislature

    Introduced, Referred to Assembly Aging and Human Services Committee

Official Summary Text

Requires each nursing home to employ patient advocate.
Topic:
Aging and Human Services
Fiscal note:
This bill has not been certified by OLS for a fiscal note.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
A4337

ASSEMBLY, No. 4337

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 19, 2026

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman� SHANIQUE SPEIGHT

District 29 (Essex and Hudson)

SYNOPSIS

���� Requires each nursing home to employ patient
advocate.�

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

An Act
concerning nursing homes and supplementing Title 26 of
the Revised Statues.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.� a.� As used in this
section, "nursing home" means a long-term care facility licensed
pursuant to P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et seq.), as well as the
distinct part of another health care facility or continuing care retirement
community that is licensed to provide skilled nursing care services pursuant to
P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et seq.).� For the purposes of this section, nursing
home shall not include: an acute care hospital; assisted living facility;
comprehensive personal care home; residential health care facility; adult day
health care facility; alternate family care program; adult family care program;
home health care agency; State psychiatric hospital; county health care
facility, including, but not limited to, county geriatric center, county
nursing home or other county long-term care facility; the New Jersey Firemen's
Home; or a health care facility operated by the Department of Military and
Veterans' Affairs.

���� b.� Each nursing home shall
employ a patient advocate on a full-time or part-time basis who is a health
care professional or social worker with previous employment in a nursing home.�
At the request of a nursing home resident or the family member of a nursing
home resident, the patient advocate shall advocate for nursing home residents
and negotiate with the nursing home on behalf of nursing home residents.

���� c.� A patient advocate shall
notify the Office of the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman if a nursing home
violates the rights of a nursing home resident.

���� 2.� The Commissioner of Health
and the Commissioner of Human Services shall adopt rules and regulations, in
accordance with the �Administrative Procedure Act,� P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1
et seq.), as are necessary to effectuate the provisions of this act.

���� 3.� This act shall take effect
immediately.

STATEMENT

���� This bill requires each
nursing home to employ a patient advocate.�

���� Under the bill, each nursing
home is to employ a patient advocate on a full-time or part-time basis who is a
health care professional or social worker with previous employment in a nursing
home.� At the request of a nursing home resident or the family member of a
nursing home resident, the patient advocate is to advocate for nursing home
residents and negotiate with the nursing home on behalf of nursing home
residents.

���� The bill provides that a
patient advocate is to notify the Office of the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman
if a nursing home violates the rights of a nursing home resident.