Establishes initiatives related to behavioral health care, including increasing reimbursement rates, providing cost-of-living adjustments, establishing grant programs for facility upkeep and provider training, and relaxing clinical supervision requirements.

S3556

SENATE, No. 3556

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 19, 2026

Sponsored by:

Senator� ANTHONY M. BUCCO

District 25 (Morris and Passaic)

SYNOPSIS

���� Establishes initiatives related to behavioral health
care, including increasing reimbursement rates, providing cost-of-living
adjustments, establishing grant programs for facility upkeep and provider
training, and relaxing clinical supervision requirements.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

An Act

concerning behavioral health care and
supplementing Title 30 and Title 45 of the Revised Statutes.

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

����� 1.�� As
used in sections 1 through 3 of P.L.��� , c.��� (C.������� ) (pending before
the Legislature as this bill):

���� �Behavioral health service�
means a procedure or service rendered by a behavioral health professional for
the treatment of mental illness, emotional disorders, or substance use disorder.

���� �Behavioral health
professional� means a physician, a physician assistant or advanced practice
nurse with a specialty in behavioral health care, a clinical social worker, a
social worker, a marriage and family therapist, a professional counselor, an
associate counselor, a rehabilitation counselor, a clinical mental health
counselor, a licensed or certified alcohol and drug counselor, a psychologist,
or a psychoanalyst.

���� �Department� means the
Department of Human Services.

���� �Medicaid� means the Medicaid
program established pursuant to P.L.1968, c.413 (C.30:4D-1 et seq.).

����� 2.�� a.�
Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the terms of a
contract entered into between the Division of Mental Health and Addiction
Services in the Department of Human Services and a residential behavioral
health service provider on or after the effective date of this act shall
include an annual increase in the cost of living adjustment received by the residential
behavioral health service provider.� The cost of living adjustment shall be
based on the Consumer Price Index for the previous 12-month period beginning
October 1 and ending September 30, as published by the United States Department
of Labor.

����� b.�� On
October 1 of each year, the department shall announce the rate of the increase
in the cost of living adjustment received by residential behavioral health
service providers.

���� 3.��� There is established in
the Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services in the Department of Human
Services a revolving, non-lapsing fund to be known as the �Residential
Behavioral Health Care Access and Improvement Fund,� which fund shall be the repository
for monies appropriated or otherwise made available for the purpose of
providing grants to residential behavioral health service providers to support
routine repairs and maintenance in residential behavioral health service
facilities.� The Assistant Commissioner of Mental Health and Addiction Services
in the Department of Human Services shall develop procedures for residential
behavioral health service providers to apply for, and for the division to
award, grants from the fund for the purpose of offsetting the cost of repairs
and maintenance in residential behavioral health service provider facilities.�
In addition, the assistant commissioner shall develop and enforce appropriate
safeguards to ensure grants awarded from the fund are used exclusively for the
purposes outlined in this section.

���� 4.��� a.� As used in this
section:

���� �Behavioral health service�
means a procedure or service rendered by a behavioral health professional for
the treatment of mental illness, emotional disorders, or substance use disorder.

���� �Behavioral health
professional� means a physician, a physician assistant or advanced practice
nurse with a specialty in behavioral health care, a clinical social worker, a
social worker, a marriage and family therapist, a professional counselor, an
associate counselor, a rehabilitation counselor, a clinical mental health
counselor, a licensed or certified alcohol and drug counselor, a psychologist,
or a psychoanalyst.

���� �Medicaid� means the Medicaid
program established pursuant to P.L.1968, c.413 (C.30:4D-1 et seq.).

���� �Medicare� means the federal
Medicare program established pursuant to Pub.L.89-97 (42 U.S.C. s.1395 et seq.).

���� b.��� Commencing on July 1,
2024, and annually thereafter, the Medicaid reimbursement rate for residential
behavioral health services shall be no less than 100 percent of the payment
rate that applies to such services under part B of Medicare.

���� c.���� For the purposes of
this section, residential behavioral health services shall include behavioral
health services furnished in a residential or inpatient health care setting by
a health care provider.�

���� d.��� The provisions of this
section shall not be construed to require any decrease in the Medicaid
reimbursement rate for a residential behavioral health service from the
previous fiscal year�s reimbursement level for the same service.

���� e.���� The provisions of this
section shall apply to residential behavioral health services:

���� (1)�� reimbursed under the
Medicaid fee-for-service delivery system or through the Medicaid managed care
delivery system, and

���� (2)�� delivered by an approved
Medicaid provider.

���� f.���� No later than July 1,
2026, and annually thereafter, the Commissioner of Human Services shall submit
a report to the Governor, and to the Legislature
pursuant
to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), providing information on the
implementation of this section, including data indicating any changes in access
to residential behavioral health services or in the

quality of behavioral health services for Medicaid
beneficiaries following any rate increases required under this section.� The
report shall include recommendations for additional enhancements to the
Medicaid rates for behavioral health services to improve access to providers
and quality of care for Medicaid beneficiaries in underserved areas of the
State.

���� 5.��� a.� As used in this
section:

���� �Behavioral health service�
means a procedure or service rendered by a behavioral health professional for
the treatment of mental illness, emotional disorders, or substance use disorder.

���� �Behavioral health
professional� means a physician, a physician assistant or advanced practice
nurse with a specialty in behavioral health care, a clinical social worker, a
social worker, a marriage and family therapist, a professional counselor, an
associate counselor, a rehabilitation counselor, a clinical mental health
counselor, a licensed or certified alcohol and drug counselor, a psychologist,
or a psychoanalyst.

���� �Director� means the Director
of the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety.

���� b.��� There is established in
the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety a
grant program to assist in the training of behavioral health service
professionals, expand the pipeline of high-quality, trained professionals, and
address shortages in the behavioral health care workforce.�

���� c.���� Grants under the
program shall be awarded on a competitive basis to entities with internship
programs in behavioral health care and entities seeking to establish internship
programs in behavioral health care, which grants shall be used by the entities
to compensate interns for their time participating in the internship program,
compensate program instructors for their time providing supervision to interns
participating in the internship program, and foster the development of
additional behavioral health care internship slots and new behavioral health
care internship programs.�

���� d.��� To be eligible for
consideration of a grant award under the program, an entity with an internship
program in behavioral health care or that is seeking to establish an internship
program in behavioral health care shall submit an application to the director,
in accordance with application procedures and requirements prescribed by the
director.� At a minimum, a grant application submitted pursuant to this
subsection shall include the following:

���� (1) details concerning the
applicant�s current internship program, if any, including the types of
behavioral health service professionals participating in the internship
program, the total number of internship slots available under the program,
whether interns are paid while participating in the program and the amount they
are paid, if applicable, and the overall number of applications to participate
in the internship program that were submitted in the preceding academic year;

���� (2)�� details concerning the
purposes for which the applicant intends to use grant funds;

���� (3)�� details concerning the
amount the applicant is requesting in grant funds;

���� (4)�� the applicant�s
objectives with regard to expanding internship opportunities and expanding the
behavioral health care workforce through a grant awarded under the program;

���� (5) the applicant�s plans to
collaborate with federal, State, regional, and local entities to expand the
pipeline of behavioral health service professionals both locally and Statewide;
and

���� (6) any other information as
required by the director.

���� e.���� The director shall
establish:

���� (1)�� selection criteria for
awarding grants under the program, including consideration of the information
submitted with an application pursuant to subsection d. of this section;

���� (2)�� requirements for
determining the amount for each grant award, which shall be based upon review
of the applications submitted and the availability of funds; and

���� (3)�� appropriate safeguards
to ensure grants awarded under the program are used exclusively for the
purposes outlined in this section and consistent with the purposes outlined in
the awardee�s grant application.

���� f.���� The director shall
annually apply for and use any federal grant funds or other federal assistance
which may be available to be used for the grant program established pursuant to
this section and may, if applicable, apply for federal grant funds or other federal
assistance on behalf of one or more entities approved for participation in the
grant program.� In awarding grants under the program, the director shall expend
available federal funds before expending State funds.

���� g.��� Within three years after
receiving a grant award under the program, the entity awarded the grant shall
submit a report to the director concerning the entity�s use of the grant
funds.� The report shall include, at a minimum, information on the number of interns
and internship program instructors receiving compensation using the grant
award, the number of new internship slots created and supported using the grant
award, the number of interns who successfully completed the internship program
and the number of interns who left the internship program prior to completion,
the number of interns who became employed as behavioral health professionals
within 12 months of completing the internship program, and any notable changes
in behavioral health intern and instructor recruitment, retention, and
employment rates following the award of the grant.

���� h.��� Commencing four years
after the effective date of this act, and annually thereafter, the director
shall submit a report to the Governor, and to the Legislature pursuant to
section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), concerning the implementation of
the grant program established pursuant to this section.� The report shall
include, but shall not be limited to, information on the number of grant
applicants, the number and amounts of grants awarded, information provided by
entities awarded grants under the program in the reports submitted pursuant to
subsection g. of this section, and any recommendations concerning the
continuation or expansion of the grant program.

���� 6.��� For the purposes of
meeting clinical supervision requirements for licensure as a clinical social
worker, professional counselor, or marriage and family therapist, the Director
of the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety
shall authorize licensed clinical social workers, licensed professional
counselors, and licensed marriage and family therapists to each provide
clinical supervision to candidates for licensure as a clinical social worker,
professional counselor, or marriage and family therapist.� An applicant for
licensure as a clinical social worker, as a professional counselor, or as a
marriage and family therapist who otherwise meets the requirements for
licensure shall be issued the requisite license regardless of whether the
applicant completed the clinical supervision requirements for licensure under
the supervision of a licensed clinical social worker, a licensed professional
counselor, or a licensed marriage and family therapist.

���� 7.��� a.� The Commissioner of Human
Services shall adopt rules and regulations, pursuant to the
"Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.),
to effectuate the provisions of sections 1 through 4 of this act.

���� b.��� The Director of the
Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety shall
adopt rules and regulations, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure
Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), to effectuate the provisions of
sections 5 and 6 of this act.

���� 8.��� The Commissioner of
Human Services shall apply for such State plan amendments or waivers as may be
necessary to implement the provisions of sections 1 through 4 this act and to
secure federal financial participation for State Medicaid expenditures under the
federal Medicaid program.

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

STATEMENT

���� This bill establishes certain
initiatives related to behavioral health care, including increasing Medicaid
reimbursement rates, providing cost-of-living adjustments for residential
behavioral health care facilities, establishing grant programs for facility
upkeep and provider training, and relaxing clinical supervision requirements
for certain professionals.

���� Specifically, the bill
requires that
contracts between the Division
of Mental Health and Addiction Services in the Department of Human Services (DHS)
and residential behavioral health service providers are to include an annual cost
of living increase adjustment based on the Consumer Price Index for the
previous 12-month period.

���� The bill establishes, in the
Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS) in the DHS, the
�Residential Behavioral Health Care Access and Improvement Fund,� which will be
dedicated to providing grants to residential behavioral health service providers
to support routine repairs and maintenance.

���� The bill provides that,
commencing on July 1, 2024, the Medicaid reimbursement rate for residential
behavioral health services is to equal to the payment rate that applies under
Medicare Part B.� The Commissioner of Human Services will be required to submit
an annual report to the Governor and the Legislature
concerning
the increased reimbursement rate, including changes in access to services or in
the

quality of services for Medicaid
beneficiaries resulting from the rate increase, as well as recommendations for
additional enhancements to the Medicaid rates.

���� The bill establishes a grant
program in the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public
Safety to assist in the training of behavioral health service professionals,
expand the pipeline of high-quality, trained professionals, and address
shortages in the behavioral health care workforce.� Grants under the program
will be awarded on a competitive basis to entities with or seeking to establish
internship programs in behavioral health care, which grants are to be used to
compensate interns and instructors participating in the internship program and
foster the development of additional behavioral health internship slots and
programs.� Grant awardees will be required to report to the Division of
Consumer Affairs concerning the use of grant funds, and the division will be
required to submit an annual report to the Governor and the Legislature
concerning the grant program.

���� The bill provides that, for
the purposes of meeting clinical supervision requirements, applicants for a
clinical social worker or professional counselor licensure may be supervised by
either a licensed clinical social worker or a licensed professional counselor.�
Current law requires these applicants to be supervised by an individual holding
the same license as the applicant is seeking.