Establishes "Kidney Disease Study Commission."

A4930

ASSEMBLY, No. 4930

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED MAY 7, 2026

Sponsored by:

Assemblyman� KENYATTA STEWART

District 35 (Bergen and Passaic)

Assemblywoman� SHANIQUE SPEIGHT

District 29 (Essex and Hudson)

SYNOPSIS

���� Establishes �Kidney Disease Study Commission.�

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

An Act
concerning kidney disease research and supplementing
Title 26 of the Revised Statutes.

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

���� 1.� a.� There is established
the Kidney Disease Study Commission in the Department of Health.

���� b.� The commission shall
consist of nine members:

���� (1)�� the Commissioner of
Health, or the commissioner�s designee, who shall serve ex officio;

���� (2)�� the Commissioner of
Human Services, or the commissioner�s designee, who shall serve ex officio;

���� (3)�� the Director of the
Office of Minority and Multicultural Health or the director�s designee, who
shall serve ex officio; and

���� (4)�� six public members, who
have knowledge, competence, experience, or interest in kidney disease research
or treatment, to be appointed as follows: one member to be appointed by the
President of the Senate; one member to be appointed by the Minority Leader of
the Senate; one member to be appointed by the Speaker of the General Assembly; one
member to be appointed by the Minority Leader of the General Assembly; and two
members to be appointed by the Governor.

���� c.� The term of office of each
appointed member shall be three years, but of the members first appointed,
three shall be appointed for terms of one year, two for terms of two years, and
one for a term of three years.

���� d.� Vacancies in the
membership of the commission shall be filled in the same manner provided for
the original appointments.

���� e.� The commission shall
organize as soon as practicable following the appointment of its members, and
shall select a chairperson from among the members.� The chairperson shall
appoint a secretary who need not be a member of the commission.

���� f.� Members of the commission
shall serve without compensation, but shall be reimbursed for necessary
expenses incurred in the performance of their duties as members of the
commission, within the limits of funds appropriated or otherwise made available
to the commission for its purposes.

���� g.� The commission shall meet
at the call of its chairperson, at the times and in the places the chairperson
may deem appropriate and necessary to effectuate the commission�s duties, and
shall conduct public hearings at such place or places as the chairperson shall
designate.

���� h.� The Department of Health
shall provide stenographic, clerical, and other administrative assistants and
professional staff as the commission requires to carry out its work.� The commission
shall be entitled to call to its assistance and avail of the services of the
employees of any State, county, or municipal department, board, bureau,
commission, or agency as the commission may require and as may be available for
the commission�s purposes.

���� 2.� It shall be the duty of
the Kidney Disease Study Commission established pursuant to section 1 of this
act to take steps necessary to encourage the development within the State of
research projects on:

���� a.���� the causes of kidney
disease, including socioeconomic, geographic, clinical, environmental, genetic,
racial, ethnic, and other factors that may contribute to increased rates of
kidney disease in minority populations and rural and underserved communities;

���� b.��� the causes of the increased
incidence of kidney disease complications in minority populations and rural and
underserved communities, and possible clinical and nonclinical, such as food
security, housing, and access to coverage, interventions to decrease such
incidence;

���� c.���� the causes of lower
rates of kidney transplants in minority, rural, and underserved
communities, including socioeconomic, geographic, clinical, environmental,
genetic, racial, ethnic, and other factors that may contribute to lower rates
of kidney transplants in minority populations and rural and
underserved communities;

���� d.� the causes of lower rates
of kidney transplants in minority, rural, and underserved communities,
including socioeconomic, geographic, clinical, environmental, genetic, racial,
ethnic, and other factors that may contribute to lower rates of kidney transplants
in minority populations and rural and underserved communities;

���� e.� possible interventions to
increase kidney transplants; and

���� f.� treatment patterns
associated with providing care, under the Medicaid program, established
pursuant to P.L.1968, c.413 (C.30:4D-1 et seq.), and through private health
insurance, to minority populations, and rural and underserved communities, that
are disproportionately affected by kidney failure.� In supporting research
described in this subsection, the Kidney Disease Study Commission shall seek to
include participants from minority populations and rural and underserved
communities as study subjects in clinical trials.

���� 3.� The Kidney Disease Study
Commission established pursuant to section 1 of this act shall prepare and
submit to the Governor and, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164
(C.52:14-19.1), the Legislature a report by January 30 of each year describing
the status of the commission's activities and the results and findings of its supported
research efforts, which report shall include any recommendations for future
initiatives or action regarding kidney disease research.

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

STATEMENT

���� This bill establishes the �Kidney
Disease Study Commission� (commission) in the Department of Health.

���� The commission will consist of
nine members:� the Commissioner of Health, or the commissioner�s designee; the
Commissioner of Human Services, or the commissioner�s designee;

���� the Director of the Office of
Minority and Multicultural Health or the director�s designee; and six public
members, who have knowledge, competence, experience, or interest in kidney
disease research or treatment.

���� The commission will have the
duty to take steps necessary to encourage the development within the State of
research projects on:

���� 1)� the causes of kidney
disease, including socioeconomic, geographic, clinical, environmental, genetic,
racial, ethnic, and other factors that may contribute to increased rates of
kidney disease in minority populations and rural and underserved communities;

���� 2)��� the causes of the
increased incidence of kidney disease complications in minority populations and
rural and underserved communities, and possible clinical and nonclinical, such
as food security, housing, and access to coverage, interventions to decrease such
incidence;

���� 3)��� the causes of lower
rates of kidney transplants in minority, rural, and underserved communities,
including socioeconomic, geographic, clinical, environmental, genetic, racial,
ethnic, and other factors that may contribute to lower rates of kidney transplants
in minority populations and rural and underserved communities;

���� 4)� the causes of lower rates
of kidney transplants in minority, rural, and underserved communities,
including socioeconomic, geographic, clinical, environmental, genetic, racial,
ethnic, and other factors that may contribute to lower rates of kidney transplants
in minority populations and rural and underserved communities;

���� 5)� possible interventions to
increase kidney transplants; and

���� 6)� treatment patterns
associated with providing care, under the Medicaid program and through private
health insurance, to minority populations, and rural and underserved
communities, that are disproportionately affected by kidney failure.� In
supporting research described in the bill, the Kidney Disease Study Commission will
seek to include participants from minority populations and rural and
underserved communities as study subjects in clinical trials.

���� The commission will prepare
and submit to the Governor and the Legislature a report by January 30 of each
year describing the status of the commission's activities and the results and
findings of its supported research efforts, which report will include any
recommendations for future initiatives or action regarding kidney disease
research.