Legislative & Advocacy Round-up for July 2023

Legislative and Advocacy Round-up

To inform brain injury advocates about

grassroots advocacy and public policy

July 2023

Upcoming Events

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Brain Injury Resource Center

Whether you have a brain injury or concussion, are a caregiver or a professional, the Brain Injury Alliance of New Jersey has resources available for you. If you’re in need of further assistance, please contact the Helpline at 1-800-669-4323, or info@bianj.org.

Visit the Resource Library

Brain Injury Support Groups

Brain injury support groups allow people with brain injuries and their family members to meet others in similar situations. They gain valuable emotional support, form friendships, obtain information, and discuss a variety of brain injury topics.

Find a Support Group

CARES Program

The BIANJ CARES (Care, Assistance, Resources, Education and Support) Program supports individuals and families impacted by brain injury through care management. This program focuses on assessing current needs and developing a plan to help individuals achieve greatest potential and improve quality of life.

More about CARES

Support Coordination

The Alliance is an approved Division of Developmental Disabilities (DDD) /Medicaid-approved Support Coordination agency. Support Coordinators provide care management services to adults 21 + who are eligible for DDD services. Individuals and their families are assisted in identifying services and developing individualized plans based on a person’s needs.

Bill Establishing Pilot Program for People with Disabilities Clears Committee

Legislation sponsored by Senator Robert Singer that would create a one-year pilot program for individuals with disabilities to address social and community inclusion needs was approved by the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee.

"Individuals with disabilities face many challenges in finding employment and vocational programs can provide training and support to help these individuals gain employment and become more independent," said Singer. "This bill addresses the importance of teaching social, recreational, and soft skills to persons with disabilities and creates data for researchers to study the effectiveness of vocational programs for these individuals."

Singer's bill, S-3736, establishes a one-year pilot program for persons with disabilities in the Department of Human Services to address social and community inclusion needs for such individuals through recreational, social, vocational, and other community-based activities.

The purpose of the pilot program is to provide individuals opportunities to learn recreational, social, and vocational skills and provide individuals the opportunity to explore their interests and build confidence in their abilities.

The bill appropriates up to $85,000 to the Department of Human Services for the purposes of the pilot program.

The bill is pending further consideration by the State Senate. No action in the General Assembly has occurred as of this writing.

Brain Injury Alliance of New Jersey to Conduct Needs Assessment

The Brain Injury Alliance of New Jersey is conducting a statewide needs assessment on Traumatic Brain Injury and quality of life and access to services amongst survivors, caregivers, and service providers. This study is supported by the Administration for Community Living, Traumatic Brain Injury State Partnership Program Grant and approved by the Rowan University Institutional Review Board (Study # PRO-2022-310).

With this needs assessment, the aim is to better understand the current picture of TBI in the state and accordingly direct efforts to areas that are the most in need of attention. The first part of the study will consist of individual surveys conducted online, over the phone, and on paper. After this, there will be focus groups in South, Central, and North Jersey.

The hope is to get a well-represented screenshot of the gaps in TBI services in New Jersey. The direct link to the surveys is HERE.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Dr. Sakina Ladha, MD, MPH by email at sladha@bianj.org or by phone at 609-480-2271.

Transportation Legislation Monitored by

Brain Injury Alliance of New Jersey

The Brain injury Alliance of New Jersey monitors a broad range of legislation related to various issues. One such issue area is transportation. You may find a list of transportation-related legislation by clicking HERE.

You can review the legislation at your convenience. If you have questions or comments about any of these bills and/or would like to express your views to your elected officials, please contact Tom Grady, Director of Advocacy & Public Affairs HERE.

Thank You!

The Brain Injury Alliance of New Jersey supports a broad range of legislation that relates to brain injury. We appreciate those members of the State Legislature or the United States Congress who support bills by registering as a cosponsor of or introducing legislation. We would like to publicly thank the following member(s) for sponsoring the following bills:

In the State Legislature

A4017 - Establishes minimum NJ FamilyCare reimbursement rate for traumatic brain injury special care nursing facilities; establishes enhanced NJ FamilyCare reimbursement rate for nursing facilities under certain circumstances; makes an appropriation.

Assemblymembers Linda Carter, Roy Freiman, Yvonne Lopez, Shanique Speight, Benjie Wimberly

A4296 - Establishes “New Jersey Vision Zero Commission.”

Assemblywoman Shanique Speight

Legislation that Advanced

Legislation listed below has advanced in the New Jersey State Legislature or the United States Congress. Please contact Tom Grady, Director of Advocacy and Public Affairs, at tgrady@bianj.org, if you would like more information about these bills and/or whether you would like to contact your elected representatives to express your views on these bills.

In the New Jersey Legislature

S2369 - Establishes minimum NJ FamilyCare reimbursement rate for traumatic brain injury special care nursing facilities; establishes enhanced NJ FamilyCare reimbursement rate for nursing facilities under certain circumstances; makes an appropriation.

NJ Resources Now More Accessible Than Ever And Easier To Use

The New Jersey Division of Disability Services announced the release of its newly reformatted resource directory, NJ Resources. The new look was developed with a focus on enhanced accessibility. You’ll notice key features like clickable links and redirects, convenient bookmarks to aide in navigation, and alternative text to name a few. Also, instead of updating this useful guide only once per year, the Division made it a living document by committing to updating the web version as changes occur. Check out the latest edition by clicking HERE.

Brain Injury Alliance of New Jersey www.bianj.org