Implements Mom Project oral health program in DOH; appropriates $3,000,000.

S4169

SENATE, No. 4169

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED MAY 11, 2026

Sponsored by:

Senator� BENJIE E. WIMBERLY

District 35 (Bergen and Passaic)

SYNOPSIS

���� Implements Mom Project oral health program in DOH;
appropriates $3,000,000.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

An Act
implementing the Mom Project oral health program in the
Department of Health and making an appropriation.

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

���� 1. As used in this act:

���� "Community oral health
center" or "center" means the following in-State entities: �a
federally qualified health center, a dental home, or an acute care hospital
licensed by the Department of Health that provides dental services to
individuals who reside in a medically underserved area.

���� "Dental home" means
a licensed dental practice that administers services in a manner that is
accessible, culturally-sensitive, and family-centered. �A "dental home"
shall not include a licensed dental practice if less than 75 percent of the
dental practice's patients are individuals who are low income and who reside in
a medically underserved area.

���� "Department" means
the Department of Health.

���� "Eligible mother" or
"mother" means a State resident who is pregnant, low-income, and
insured under the Medicaid or NJ FamilyCare program, or not enrolled in,
eligible for, or determined presumptively eligible for coverage under any
Medicaid program.

���� "Low-income" means a
gross annual household income that is less than 300 percent of the federal
poverty level.

���� �Maternal Health Organization�
means the NJ Maternal and Infant Health Innovation Authority and the three New
Jersey Maternal Consortia licensed as central service facilities by the
department prior to the effective date of this act.

���� "Medically underserved
area" means an area designated by the federal Health Resources and
Services Administration as having too few primary care providers, a high rate
of infant mortality and poverty, and a disproportionately high share of elderly
persons in the population of the area.

���� "Mom Project" or
"program" means the Mom Project program established pursuant to
section 3 of this act.

���� 2. The Legislature finds and
declares:

���� a. Maternal periodontal
disease is linked to preterm birth and low birthweight.

���� b. Pregnant women with chronic
periodontal disease are seven times more likely to go into labor prematurely.

���� c. Treatment of periodontal
disease during pregnancy has been shown to be safe and effective.

���� d. The federal Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention reports that 47 percent of American adults 30
years of age or older have periodontal disease, and between 60 percent and 75
percent of pregnant women have gingivitis, which can occur due to hormonal
changes during pregnancy.

���� e. Maternal periodontitis,
which occurs with advanced untreated gingivitis, has been clinically and
scientifically linked to preterm birth, pre-eclempsia, and low birth weight
babies, although treatment during pregnancy has been deemed to be safe, effective,
and recommended.

���� f. Access to preventive dental
care during pregnancy reduced the occurrence of periodontal disease, and thus
the need for neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) stays. �Newborns with elevated
oral bacteria are twice as likely to be admitted to the NICU and three times
more likely to stay longer than seven days.

���� g. According to the American
Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, early childhood cavities remain a significant,
but preventable public health problem.

���� h. High levels of cariogenic
bacteria in pregnant women can increase the risk of dental cavities in infants
or young children.

���� i. Pregnant women and
caregivers can implement preventive measures to decrease a child's risk of
developing dental disease.

���� j. According to articles
published in the New England Journal of Medicine and the Journal of the
American Dental Association:

���� (1) the cost of dental care in
the U.S. has increased 30 percent in the past 20 years;

���� (2) in 2023, the national
spending for dental care was $174 billion, with $68 billion in out-of-pocket
expenses;

���� (3) NICU stays add up to a
significant taxpayers� expense of over $5.5 billion annually;

���� (4) dental and oral disease is
particularly burdensome to marginalized and chronically underserved
populations; and

���� (5) Black and African American
mothers and their infants in New Jersey are disproportionately affected by poor
birthing outcomes and maternal morbidity, as well as by inequities in access to
oral health care. �According to the federal Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, Black women are three times more likely to die from
pregnancy-related complications than white women. �New Jersey has the highest
such disparity, where Black women are nearly seven times more affected.

���� k. Pregnant women, women who
have recently given birth in medically underserved areas, and people who earn a
low-income tend to lack access to dental care due to:

���� (1) lack of insurance coverage
for dental care services;

���� (2) the absence or shortage of
free or reduced-cost dental care services;

���� (3) language barriers; and

���� (4) fear due to immigration
status, discrimination, or bias related to racial or socio-economic status.

���� l. It is in the public
interest for the Legislature:

���� (1) to fund the Mom Project as
a sustainable model for access to oral health education and dental care for
certain at-risk women who are pregnant or who recently have given birth; and

���� (2) to collect data regarding
the effect of dental health care and oral health education on improving
pregnancy outcomes.

���� 3. There is established in the
Department of Health, the Mom Project program.

���� a. The department shall
administer the program in conjunction with at least one Maternal Health
Organization. �Within 90 days following the effective date of this act, the
following services shall be provided:

���� (1) Each Maternal Health
Organization shall implement an outreach plan to identify eligible mothers, who
reside in the area served by the organization, and register the mothers in the
program. Upon registration and in a manner that is consistent with federal and
State privacy laws, the Maternal Health Organization shall endeavor to collect
the following information from eligible mothers: �whether the mother has or had
access to a dental home during a current or prior pregnancy; the mother's oral
hygiene routine, including the use of fluoride toothpaste; the mother's dietary
habits; and the results of previous pregnancies.

���� (2) Each Maternal Health
Organization shall be provided a comprehensive oral health education program
with a proven record of implementation success, on a quarterly basis. �Prior to
the commencement of the oral health education program, each Maternal Health
Organization shall require eligible mothers to complete a pre-education
assessment that includes testing the mother's understanding of oral health and
oral hygiene.

���� (3) The department shall
select a trusted organization with an established perinatal oral health
education program that holds a proven record of success, to conduct �Train the
Trainers� quarterly sessions with each Maternal Health Organization, including
recommendations for impactful community-tailored education, promoting
medical-dental integration, and long-term impact.

���� (4) Each Maternal Health
Organization shall provide eligible mothers a minimum of three hours of oral
health education that includes the following: oral hygiene routines for
mothers, infants, and children; nutritional counseling; education regarding the
correlation between cariogenic disease and cardiovascular disease, diabetes,
and gastric changes; the impact of tobacco, drugs, and alcohol on a mother's
oral health and the unborn child; recommendations and resources for routine
oral health care for mothers, infants, and children; and education regarding
available educational support.

���� (5) Oral health education
program trainers shall be compatible with the language and cultural needs of
the eligible mothers enrolled in the oral health education program.

���� (6) Following the eligible
mother's completion of the oral health education program, the Maternal Health
Organization shall require the eligible mothers to complete a post-education
assessment that includes testing to assess the mother's understanding of oral
health and oral hygiene routines.

���� b. Within 90 days following
the effective date of this act, a community oral health center seeking to
participate in the Mom Project shall file an application with the department,
in a manner to be determined by the department. �The department shall require
an eligible community oral health center to enter into an agreement with a
Maternal Health Organization to implement the following:

���� (1) Following an eligible
mother's completion of the oral health education program, the center shall
develop a customized oral health treatment plan and nutritional recommendations
for the mother, infant, and child, as applicable.

���� (2) Following an eligible
mother's completion of the oral health education program, the center shall provide
the mother, infant, and child, as applicable, oral health treatment for one
year. �The dental care shall include the following:

���� (a) a dental visit for a
comprehensive exam, cleaning, caries risk assessment, periodontal charting, and
the establishment of a one-year treatment plan;

���� (b) comprehensive dental care
and restorative treatment as needed;

���� (c) a cleaning and treatment
plan review approximately six months and one year following the date of the
initial dental visit;

���� (d) two dental visits for the
child of the mother; and

���� (e) identification of a dental
home for the mother�s child before the child receives his or her first tooth.

���� c. Within 180 days following
the effective date of this act, each Maternal Health Organization and community
oral health center shall compile and report relevant data to the department, as
determined by the department.

���� d. (1) Within 180 days
following the effective date of this act, the department shall contract with a
third-party to assist with data analysis and project evaluation activities.

���� (2) Prior to the expiration of
this act, the department and the third-party hired to assist with data analysis
and project evaluation activities shall informally convene an advisory panel of
interested stakeholders, including, but not limited to, the Maternal Health
Organizations and centers participating in the Mom Project, Medicaid managed care
organizations, and the Department of Human Services to evaluate reported data. �

���� (3) The evaluation shall
consider, at a minimum, the costs of the Mom Project and comparison costs if
similar services were purchased through the Medicaid program on a fee for
service basis, the results of the oral health education program based on test
results, and maternal and child health outcomes as compared to a similar group
of Medicaid beneficiaries who did not participate in the Mom Project. �Based on
its findings, the advisory panel shall design a model to be potentially
included in the Medicaid program.

���� (4) The department shall
prepare and submit a report of its findings to the Governor, and to the
Legislature, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1) following
the expiration of this act.

���� 4. There is appropriated from
the General Fund to the Department of Health such sums as may be necessary to
effectuate the purposes of this act, but not to exceed $3,000,000, as shall be
determined by the Commissioner of Health, as follows;

���� a. the organization that holds
�Train the Trainers� quarterly sessions with the Maternal Health Organizations,
shall receive the following reimbursement for services: $75,000 per Maternal
Health Organization in the first year, $75,000 per Maternal Health Organization
in the second year, and $75,000 per Maternal Health Organization in the third
year;

���� b. each Maternal Health
Organization shall receive the following reimbursement for services: $100,000
in the first year, $100,000 in the second year, and $100,000 in the third year;

���� c. community oral health
centers shall receive the following reimbursement for services: up to $2,500
per eligible mother, and not to exceed 100 mothers in the first year, not to
exceed 100 mothers in the second year, and not to exceed 100 mothers in the
third year; and

���� d. the third-party hired by
the department to assist with data analysis and project evaluation activities
shall receive $150,000 for the provision of services.

���� 5. This act shall take effect
90 days following the date of enactment and shall expire three years
thereafter.

STATEMENT

���� This bill implements the Mom
Project oral health program in the Department of Health (department) and appropriates
$3,000,000 as provided in the bill.

���� Under the bill, the department
is to administer the program in conjunction with at least one Maternal Health
Organization.� Within 90 days following the bill�s effective date, the
following services are to be provided:

���� (1) Each Maternal Health
Organization is to implement an outreach plan to identify eligible mothers, who
reside in the area served by the organization, and register the mothers in the
program.

���� (2) Each Maternal Health
Organization is to be provided a comprehensive oral health education program
with a proven record of implementation success, on a quarterly basis.�

���� (3) The department is to
select a trusted organization with an established perinatal oral health
education program that holds a proven record of success, to conduct �Train the
Trainers� quarterly sessions with each Maternal Health Organization, including
recommendations for impactful community-tailored education, promoting
medical-dental integration, and long-term impact.

���� (4) Each Maternal Health
Organization is to provide eligible mothers a minimum of three hours of oral
health education.

���� (5) Oral health education
program trainers are to be compatible with the language and cultural needs of
the eligible mothers enrolled in the oral health education program.

���� (6) Following the eligible
mother's completion of the oral health education program, the Maternal Health
Organization is to require the eligible mothers to complete a post-education
assessment that includes testing to assess the mother's understanding of oral
health and oral hygiene routines.

���� Within 90 days following the
effective date of this act, a community oral health center seeking to
participate in the Mom Project is to file an application with the department,
in a manner to be determined by the department.� The department is to require
an eligible community oral health center to enter into an agreement with a
Maternal Health Organization to implement the following:

���� (1) Following an eligible
mother's completion of the oral health education program, the center is to
develop a customized oral health treatment plan and nutritional recommendations
for the mother, infant, and child, as applicable.

���� (2) Following an eligible
mother's completion of the oral health education program, the center is to
provide the mother, infant, and child, as applicable, oral health treatment for
one year.�

���� Within 180 days following the
bill�s effective date, each Maternal Health Organization and community oral
health center is to compile and report relevant data to the department, as
determined by the department, and the department is to contract with a
third-party to assist with data analysis and project evaluation activities. �The
department is to prepare and submit a report of its findings to the Governor
and Legislature.