Earlier this month, the family of Lieutenant Governor Sheila Oliver announced her passing at the age of 71. First serving in the General Assembly beginning in 2003, Lieutenant Governor Oliver served as Speaker for several years starting in 2010 — the first Black woman in the nation to lead a legislative chamber.

To read a statement from the Oliver family, click here.

To read a statement from Governor Murphy, click here.

Click here to view Lt. Gov Oliver’s memorial service, and here for Governor Murphy’s remarks.

Following Commissioner Judith Persichilli’s announcement of her retirement this month, Governor Murphy announced his intention to nominate Dr. Kaitlan Baston to be the next Commissioner of the Department of Health. Dr. Baston acted as the Division Head of Addiction Medicine at Cooper University Hospital in Camden and founder of the Center for Healing at the hospital and is currently serving as the Acting Commissioner. The State Senate will consider the nomination when they reconvene following summer. BioNJ congratulates and looks forward to collaborating with Dr. Baston in her nominated role as Commissioner.

Now that State Senator and former Governor Richard Codey (D, LD-27) has announced his intention to retire at the end of the session, following his 50-year tenure in the State Legislature, the number of new seat occupants will reach a minimum of 32. Sen. Codey won the Democratic primary earlier this summer, running against Sen. Nia Gill as a byproduct of redistricting. On Thursday, August 24, the Essex County and Passaic County Democratic County Committees will hold a joint meeting to select the candidates to fill the open seats. If all goes as announced, Asm. John McKeon will replace Sen. Codey on the ballot while Brendan Gill, the Essex County Commissioner, will replace his wife, Alixon Collazos-Gill, who won the June primary. Finally, Dr. Rosaura (“Rosy”) Bagolie will be slated for the additional open Assembly seat.

• Senate

Fred Madden (D, LD-4)

Jean Stanfield (R, LD-8)

Christopher Connors (R, LD-9)

Sam Thompson (R/D, LD-12)

Steve Oroho (R, LD-24)

Richard Codey (D, LD-27)

Sandra Cunningham (D, LD-31)

Nicholas Sacco (D-32)

Nia Gill (D, LD-34)           

•   Assembly

Beth Sawyer (R, LD-3) – Lost Senate Primary, LD-3

Paul Moriarty (D, LD-4) – Running for Senate, LD-4

Gabriela Mosquera (D, LD-4)

DiAnne Gove (R, LD-9)

John Catalano (R, LD-10)

Dan Benson (D, LD-14)

Sadaf Jaffer (D, LD-16)

Joe Egan (D, LD-17)

Parker Space (R, LD-24) – Running for Senate, LD-24

Hal Wirths (R, LD-24)

Mila Jasey (D, LD-27)

John McKeon (D, LD-27) – Running for Senate, LD-27 (expected)

Ralph Caputo (D, LD-28)

Angela McKnight (D, LD-31) – Running for Senate, LD-31

Pedro Mejia (D, LD-32)

Angelica Jimenez (D, LD-32)

Raj Mukherji (D, LD-33) – Running for Senate, LD-32

Annette Chaparro (D, LD-33)

Britnee Timberlake (D, LD-34) – Running for Senate, LD-34

Thomas Giblin (D, LD-34)

DeAnne DeFuccio (R, LD-39)

Kevin Rooney (R, LD-40)

At the end of July, Ranking Member Frank Pallone (NJ-6) of the Energy and Commerce Committee, Ranking Member Richard Neal (MA-1) of the Ways and Means Committee, and Ranking Member Bobby Scott (VA-3) of the Education and the Workforce Committee announced a bill that would expand the drug pricing provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act. Among the bill’s provisions are an expansion of the IRA’s purview to include the commercial market.

BioNJ has engaged the State’s Congressional delegation to convey the damage that the enactment of these provisions would have on the life sciences ecosystem within the State, one of the central contributors to the State’s economy. We will continue to monitor for developments and emphasize the inhibitory effects it would have on biomedical.

At the end of July, the Senate Finance Committee passed the Modernizing and Ensuring PBM Accountability (MEPA) Act. In addition, the House Ways and Means Committee approved the Health Care Price Transparency Act of 2023. In addition to requiring transparency from insurers and PBMs, the legislation would prohibit PBMs associated with Medicare Part D from deriving compensation based on list prices, prevent spread pricing and require the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services to generate a report on the impact that vertical integration has had on prices.

On July 31, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) hosted an extensive workshop focused on maximizing NIH’s approaches to tech transfer. While the scope of the workshop was broad, some of the panelists were proponents of the misuse of the “march-in” provision of the Bayh-Dole Act.

A variety of organizations with whom BioNJ works, and particularly the Bayh-Dole Coalition, have submitted materials to the NIH regarding why these proposals fundamentally misunderstand the purpose of the Bayh-Dole Act and would undermine the legacy of success that this legislation has achieved, accelerating innovation and rendering the United States as the dominant source of biomedical innovation globally.

BioNJ will continue to monitor this discourse and pursue opportunities to convey the ramifications that misusing the Bayh-Dole Act would have.

For comments submitted by the Bayh-Dole Coalition, click here.

Dr. Ted Love, President & CEO of Global Blood Therapeutics and new Chair of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), penned an article in STAT that discusses the impact that some of the provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act will have on the life sciences ecosystem. The article explores Dr. Love’s background, the history of Global Blood Therapeutics and how these policies would render the success of the company he built — and companies like it — significantly less likely.

BioNJ is the voice of New Jersey’s life sciences sector in Trenton and Washington. BioNJ’s Public Policy Support Series sponsorship opportunities are now available for 2023. Help ensure BioNJ continues to deliver our message of improved Patient access and enhanced innovation through a Public Policy Support Series Sponsorship.  

Click here for more information.

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