Bill > A3344

This bill, known as the Mental Health Access Act, aims to improve access to mental health services by increasing the reimbursement rates that the State Medicaid program pays to licensed providers for certain evidence-based behavioral health services, which are treatments for mental illness, emotional disorders, or substance abuse. Specifically, the bill mandates that Medicaid reimbursement for individual or group counseling provided by licensed professionals or licensed substance abuse treatment facilities must be at least as high as the rate paid by Medicare, the federal health insurance program for seniors and some disabled individuals, provided these services are recognized as evidence-based, either by being listed in a federal registry or by meeting criteria set by the Commissioner of Human Services in consultation with the Commissioner of Children and Families. The bill also requires the Commissioner of Human Services to seek federal approval and implement necessary regulations to put these changes into effect, with the new reimbursement rates applying to services provided after a specified date following the bill's enactment.

Health and Social Services

https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/bill-search/2026/A3344