Bill > A1361

Introduced Session

This bill makes a supplemental appropriation for fiscal year 2019 of $25 million to the Department of Health to assist certain mental health and addiction service providers who are transitioning to the fee-for-service reimbursement system. Specifically, the bill authorizes the department to distribute supplemental reimbursements to providers who held cost-based reimbursement contracts with the State, and who subsequently transitioned to the fee-for-service reimbursement system, equal to the difference, if any, between the provider's billable revenues under the fee-for-service reimbursement system during FY 2019 and the value of the provider's most recent annual cost-based reimbursement contract with the State. Only providers who have demonstrated a good faith effort to bill Medicaid for all eligible services shall be entitled for a supplemental reimbursement. The appropriated funds are to consist of any unspent funds appropriated to mental health and substance use treatment programs within the Department of Health and the Department of Human Services, with additional amounts, as necessary, to be appropriated from the General Fund, subject to the approval of the Director of the Division of Budget and Accounting in the Department of the Treasury. During fiscal year 2017, the Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services began transitioning mental health and addictions services purchased under contract to a fee-for-service reimbursement structure. While the department anticipates that the fee-for-service system will result in more cost-efficiency and improved health outcomes for clients, some providers have warned that the transition will be detrimental to their financial stability, and may force them to curtail services or close down. It is the sponsor's intent to establish a financial safety net for those providers that lose reimbursement funds during this transition in order to ensure continuity of care for current service consumers.

AI Summary

Committee Categories

Daniel Benson (D)*,  Carol Murphy (D)*,  Valerie Vainieri Huttle (D)*,  Ronald Dancer (R),  Gordon Johnson (D),  Angela Mcknight (D), 

Introduced, Referred to Assembly Human Services Committee (on 01/14/2020)

Official Document