Bill

Bill > S3558


NJ S3558

Requires health insurance and Medicaid coverage for the treatment of stuttering.


summary

Introduced
09/12/2024
In Committee
02/10/2025
Crossed Over
Passed
Dead

Introduced Session

2024-2025 Regular Session

Bill Summary

This bill requires health insurers (health, hospital and medical service corporations, commercial individual and group health insurers, health maintenance organizations, health benefits plans issued pursuant to the New Jersey Individual Health Coverage and Small Employer Health Benefits Programs, the State Health Benefits Program, and the School Employees' Health Benefits Program) and the State Medicaid program to provide coverage for medical expenses incurred in the treatment of stuttering, including habilitative speech therapy and rehabilitative speech therapy. Whether treatment is a medical necessity is to be determined by the covered person's medical doctor. The bill requires coverage to be provided whether the services are delivered in-person or through telemedicine or telehealth, without the imposition of any prior authorization or other utilization management requirements, and without cost-sharing. Pursuant to the bill, "habilitative speech therapy" means speech therapy that helps a person keep, learn, or improve skills and functioning for daily living; and "rehabilitative speech therapy" means speech therapy that helps a person restore or improve skills and functioning for daily living that have been lost or impaired.

AI Summary

This bill requires health insurers (including hospital, medical service, and health maintenance organizations) and the State Medicaid program to provide coverage for the treatment of stuttering, including habilitative and rehabilitative speech therapy. The coverage must be provided without any prior authorization, utilization management requirements, or cost-sharing, whether the services are delivered in-person or through telemedicine/telehealth. The bill defines "habilitative speech therapy" as therapy that helps a person keep, learn, or improve skills for daily living, and "rehabilitative speech therapy" as therapy that helps a person restore or improve lost or impaired skills for daily living.

Committee Categories

Budget and Finance, Business and Industry

Sponsors (10)

Last Action

Referred to Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee (on 02/10/2025)

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