This new bill A-4588 would reduce the assessment rate to 2.28 percent in FY 2016.
At inception, the assessment was earmarked to help fund charity care. Governor Chris Christie however has proposed a 22 percent decrease in total charity care funding due to burgeoning enrollment in the ACA. So from that standpoint, a reduction in the ASC assessment makes sense.
“While most certainly welcome for ASCs who have long loathed this assessment, I find it a bit difficult to understand how a bill like this — Democratic inspired no less — could be supported or passed,” commented Jeff Shanton, editor of THE PULSE, a newsletter for ASCs in New Jersey.
“New Jersey has a gaping chasm of a budget deficit, and labor unions which constitute a major source of support for the Democrats are being asked to contribute more toward their health insurance and pensions.
“The Democrats have been espousing a ‘millionaires tax’ and other ways to fix the budget problem, yet with this bill Democratic leadership is in essence giving doctors/healthcare providers a break over those unions,” he notes. “Nonetheless, we applaud Assemblyman Burzichelli, Assemblywoman Lampitt and Senators Sarlo and van Drew (co-sponsors in the Senate) for their efforts on behalf of the industry, and welcome any relief.”
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