As part of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's national Cover the Uninsured Week , NJBIA emphasized that controlling health insurance costs is the best way to increase the number of people with health insurance. At a press conference with ten other New Jersey business and healthcare organizations, NJBIA Senior Vice President Melanie Willoughby noted that most New Jerseyans get their insurance from private-sector employers, even though employers' health plan costs are increasing at three times the rate of inflation. “It would be a mistake to scrap the entire system,” Willoughby said. “It just needs some help. So let's keep what works and mend what is broken.”
Cover the Uninsured Week was held May 1-7 to highlight the fact that 46 million Americans do not have health insurance and to encourage policymakers in Congress and all 50 states to address the problem. NJBIA unveiled a detailed health insurance reform plan to help New Jersey lawmakers do just that. In New Jersey, an estimated 1.3 million people have no health insurance. At the same time, the cost of providing health benefits continues to soar for employers. NJBIA believes that more businesses, particularly small businesses, would offer health insurance if it was more affordable, and more individuals would enroll or purchase individual coverage if costs were not so out of control.
Under NJBIA's health insurance reform plan, employers would have more insurance plan choices, quality would improve and medical mistakes would be reduced, new health insurance products like Health Savings Accounts would be widely used, and direct tax incentives offsetting exploding insurance costs would be provided. NJBIA also believes that the State's regulated market (where most individuals and businesses with two to 50 employees get insurance) is too rigid, forcing employers to choose from a few plans with coverage options predetermined by the State. Under the NJBIA health insurance reform plan, employers would have more flexibility and more choices in the types of plans they can buy. It is especially important for the State to offer a basic health plan that provides essential insurance coverage at lower costs.
NJBIA continues to oppose health insurance mandates that increase premium costs while requiring employers to pay for specific kinds of medical coverage regardless of whether their employees want or need them. Greater use of electronic medical records can reduce duplication of medical tests and cut down on costly medical mistakes. Furthermore, individuals and small businesses should be allowed to deduct the full cost of health insurance from their State income taxes. For more information, contact Christine Stearns at ext. 260.
Electronic Records Task Force Advances—Legislation aimed at increasing the use of money-saving electronic medical records by New Jersey hospitals was released May 4 by the Senate Health Committee. The bill, S-852 (Bark), would create a 15-member task force to identify the types of technologies that would be most effective in reducing duplication and errors at hospitals. The task force would also recommend incentives to encourage hospitals to use this technology. Greater use of electronic medical records is a key element of NJBIA's health insurance reform plan.
With New Jersey employers' health insurance costs rising at three times the rate of inflation, the State cannot afford costly medical errors, duplication, and high administrative costs. A Dartmouth University study estimates that as much as one-third of the nation's healthcare spending goes to duplicative tests and procedures that do little to improve a patient's health. Experts estimate that as many as one in five lab tests and X rays are conducted solely because previous test results were unavailable. Greater use of electronic records would reduce duplication by giving doctors access to previous tests and cut down on errors by making a patient's medical records more accessible to the treating physician. For more information, contact Christine Stearns at ext. 260.
NJBIA-Rutgers Economic Forum, May 10—Find out where the economy and key industry sectors are headed and what should be done to improve the State's business climate at this Economic Forum brought to you by NJBIA and the Rutgers Business School in Newark and New Brunswick. A Look into the Future will feature nationally known investment consultant Joseph Battipaglia, executive vice president of Ryan Beck & Co., and a panel discussion featuring CEOs from key New Jersey industries—commercial real estate, pharmaceuticals, logistics and technology. The panelists are: Mark Yeager of The Gale Company; Donald Drakeman of Medarex Inc.; Bud Cass of Advanced Cerametrics, Inc.; and Jon Shevell of New England Motor Freight. Howard Tuckman, dean of Rutgers Business School in Newark and New Brunswick, will moderate the discussion. The forum will be held at the Doubletree Hotel, Newark Airport, Elizabeth, from 7:45 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. The cost is $49 per person for NJBIA members and $89 for nonmembers. For more information, contact Katie Wittkamp at 609-393-7707, ext. 239, or register online.
New Good Neighbor Awards Luncheon on Friday, June 2—NJBIA's 46th Annual New Good Neighbor Awards Luncheon will be held Friday, June 2, at the Sheraton at Woodbridge Place in Iselin . Join the biggest names in New Jersey 's commercial construction industry as NJBIA presents its New Good Neighbor Award to 12 of the State's newest and best development projects. Come meet our winners and network with many of the top developers, architects and builders in the State. Tickets are $70 per person. Tables of ten are available for $700. This outstanding networking event will begin with a reception at 11:45 a.m., lunch at 12:30, followed immediately by the awards presentations. For more information, contact Stacy Wichner at 609-393-7707, ext. 213, or register online. You can also reach a captive audience of the State's top builders and developers by becoming an event sponsor. Contact Sherry Esteves at ext. 219 for sponsorship information.
June 7 Seminar: Making Sense of Family and Disability Leave—This half-day program will help you sort through bewildering levels of leave regulations and show you how to avoid costly mistakes regarding length of leave, job protection, benefits and discrimination issues. Top employment law specialists will explain how to avoid the many legal pitfalls and will share the lessons they have learned from years of struggling with leave requests. The seminar will be held on Wednesday, June 7, at the Holiday Inn in Hazlet from 8:30 a.m. to noon. The cost is $109 per person for NJBIA members and $139 for nonmembers. To register, contact Alex Hollywood at 609-393-7707, ext. 262. You can also download the brochure or register online now.
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