October 8, 2026

With the New Jersey Legislature back in full swing, several bills have been considered that are worth tracking.

First, Ian McLaughlin, SVP of Government Affairs & Policy at BioNJ, testified in support of the Patient & Provider Protection Act, A1502 (Freiman/Greenwald/etc.) / S2345 (McKeon/Gopal), on October 5 in the Senate Commerce Committee. This bill is an effort to comprehensively reform various aspects of how prescription medications are covered and handled by pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs). The bill had been passed by the Assembly on May 18 of this year, and this was the first time that the Senate has considered the legislation.

BioNJ has been supportive of the overall effort that emerged from the Assembly and is being contemplated in the Senate. Committee Chair Lagana conveyed that the Senate is still actively considering the status of the language, and Assemblyman Freiman — the first-prime sponsor of the bill in the Assembly — has conveyed in the press that he is not aligned with some of the proposed changes to the bill that was voted out of the Senate Commerce Committee and would not concur with the amendments as they stand.

In particular, BioNJ emphasized the centrality of provisions that would decouple PBM compensation from list prices and rebates to actually making medications more affordable for Patients.

On the day of the hearing, Debbie Hart, President & CEO of BioNJ, co-authored an op-ed with Cathleen Bennett, the CEO of the New Jersey Hospital Association, on the importance of PBM reform in this moment. While the op-ed addresses the importance of PBM reform more broadly from both the perspectives of the life sciences ecosystem and the community of hospitals across New Jersey, the article also highlights the importance of the bipartisan reform effort represented by the Patient & Provider Protection Act.

Among the supportive testimony submitted to the Committee were written comments by the Aimed Alliance — representing a broad coalition of Patient advocacy organizations and caregivers — and they emphasized the importance of both reforming PBM compensation and establishing a fiduciary obligation to clarify exactly who PBMs are prioritizing.

To read the op-ed by BioNJ and the New Jersey Hospital Association in BINJE, click here.

BioNJ will continue to connect with policymakers to emphasize the importance of some of the most critical provisions of this legislation to achieving actual affordability to ensure that as many of the obstacles separating Patients from the medications they need are diminished as possible.

In addition, Debbie Hart testified before the Assembly Commerce & Economic Development Committee on October 5, conveying recommendations to policymakers regarding opportunities to support the growth of the life sciences sector across the state. Hart highlighted some of the components included in BioNJ’s White Paper published earlier this year entitled "Life Sciences in New Jersey: Prescription for Sustained Leadership", which outlines a set of recommendations that speak to different aspects of the industry. She noted the successes and opportunities to build upon the Commission on Science, Innovation & Technology (CSIT), attracting the growth of New Jersey’s contract development and management organizations (CDMOs) and improving the Angel Match Program to ensure that the State is supporting all aspects of innovation in the life sciences sector — just a handful of examples of recommendations outlined in the White Paper.

Committee Chair Spearman conveyed interest in pursuing several of the suggestions highlighted by Hart, and BioNJ looks forward to working with him and the Legislature to bring these ideas to fruition.

Additionally, several bills have been considered that are worth tracking:

• S4601 (Vitale/Greenstein) — Requires pharmacist or pharmacist's designee to notify consumer of substituted drug or biological product.
• BioNJ was happy to support this bill, and it was reported by the Senate Health, Human Services & Senior Citizens Committee unanimously on October 5.
• A434 (Venezia/Reynolds-Jackson/Simmons) — Prohibits SHBP, SEHBP and Medicaid from denying coverage for maintenance medications for chronic conditions for covered persons solely because of change in health benefits plan or pharmacy benefits manager.
• This bill was most recently reported by the Assembly Health Committee on October 5 and is now referred to the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

Several bills have either been introduced or have made progress in the Legislature that are focused on artificial intelligence — some of which specifically focused on how the technology may be used by the insurance industry.



• S1840 (Singleton/Scutari) — Creates "New Jersey Responsible AI Advancement and Workforce Protection Act."
• S4075 (Zwicker/Turner/Scutari) — Regulates use of artificial intelligence-based systems for electronic monitoring regarding employment and public services.
• This bill was reported by the Senate Labor Committee on October 1 and is now referred to the Senate Budget & Appropriations Committee.
• S4458 (Zwicker) — Establishes five-year "New Jersey Artificial Intelligence Workforce Transition Act."

Finally, BioNJ was happy to join a coalition of Patient advocates, life sciences companies and policymakers on the floor of the New Jersey Assembly in acknowledgement of both Ovarian and Blood Cancer Awareness Month. As always, BioNJ is proud to join such a passionate and dedicated network of advocates — and we deeply appreciate that policymakers, from Assembly Speaker Coughlin and Majority Leader Greenwald to the many members of the Assembly, who joined us to highlight the importance of continuing to confront these diseases, and to celebrate the progress that so many companies across New Jersey have and continue to make.

On Monday, DOBI published a bulletin to provide guidance regarding requirements for all “health insurance companies, health maintenance organizations, health service corporations, hospital service corporations and medical service corporations issuing health benefits plans to provide coverage for biomarker precision medical testing for the diagnosis, treatment, management or monitoring of diseases or conditions.”

BioNJ is pleased to see this bulletin addressing a critical component of the healthcare experience, because Patient outcomes are essentially always best when disease progression is identified as early as possible to enable swift and effective clinical confrontation.

To read the bulletin from DOBI, click here.

In addition, the New Jersey Department of Health (DOH) announced a proposal to increase the fee for the Department’s panel of newborn screening tests from $150 to $260. This fee covers the cost of performing newborn screening tests on blood spots collected from each newborn in the state, and the last time that the fee was increased was in 2017. The Department inviters written comments on the proposal by November 20 of this year.

To read the proposal by the NJ DOH, click here.

To submit comments to the NJ DOH on the proposal, click here.

At the end of September, CMS released the final rule for the Global Benchmark for Efficient Drug Pricing (GLOBE) Model, which is a new mandatory Medicare payment model to assess rebates for certain drugs under Medicare Part B if prices exceed those paid in economically comparable countries.

John Crowley, President & CEO of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), released the following statement in response to the finalized rule:

“Biotechnology is one of America's greatest strengths, delivering medical miracles to patients, driving economic growth, and advancing our national security. Mandatory, government price-setting policies under the guise of “most-favored nation” will not address the underlying drivers of health care costs, nor will they remove the barriers that keep Patients from accessing the medicines they need. Instead, the decision to finalize the GLOBE model threatens the innovation ecosystem that makes new treatments and cures possible.

“At a time when the United States should be strengthening its leadership in biotechnology, MFN only further enables the ascent of China, which is aggressively investing in life sciences and advanced technologies.” 

BioNJ is continuing to monitor and collect input from Member companies and will continue to advocate as opportunities arise.

To read the final rule, click here.

Yesterday, Dennis Hart, the Executive Director of the Chemistry Council of New Jersey, and Tony Bawidamann, Chair of the NEW Jobs PAC, authored an op-ed in BINJE entitled “N.J. is making progress on permitting — and that’s good for business.”

Highlighting the “overwhelming impact that regulations and permit processes on New Jersey’s economy”, the two emphasize the progress being made by Governor Sherrill’s administration in identifying the problems that the business community is encouraging the State remedy.

From establishing a cross-agency permitting team, developing a permitting dashboard for improved transparency and the establishment of New Jersey’s first Chief Operating Officer, the two articulate the cause for optimism and hope for progress.

To read the op-ed, click here.

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 2026. You can help to ensure that 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. Thank you for your consideration.

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