Medicaid 2.0 Blueprint Charts Path Forward for New Jerseys Medicaid Program

The New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute, with support from The Nicholson Foundation, has released a landmark new report, Medicaid 2.0: Blueprint for the Future. The Blueprint lays out 24 detailed recommendations to both redesign and modernize New Jersey’s Medicaid program, which will lead to sustainable improvements in the quality, cost, and outcomes of care for Medicaid beneficiaries.

The development of the Blueprint was conceived and funded by The Nicholson Foundation, consistent with our mission to strengthen the healthcare delivery system that serves New Jersey’s most vulnerable populations. It is the result of a thoughtful process that brought together a wide variety of stakeholders from across the state, including healthcare providers, health plan officials, hospital leaders, government officials, union representatives, academics, advocacy groups, and patients.

With the expansion of Medicaid made possible by the Affordable Care Act, the program now provides health insurance to nearly 1.8 million of New Jersey’s most disadvantaged residents, including 40 percent of the state’s children. New Jersey annually spends $15 billion, or nearly 20 percent of the state budget, on Medicaid, and nearly one-in-five New Jersey residents rely on Medicaid to access and afford outpatient treatment, hospital care, medications, and other health-related services.

In the face of political uncertainty about the future of federal Medicaid funding, it is now more important than ever that New Jersey implement policies to protect the delivery and the quality of health care for Medicaid beneficiaries. The Blueprint can be used by policymakers to make the structural and clinical changes necessary to strengthen and sustain Medicaid over the short and long term.

The Nicholson Foundation is committed to continuing the successful stakeholder process that led to the creation of this Blueprint and seeing many of these recommendations implemented. We will be funding further efforts to help make this happen.

Download the report

Visit the NJHCQI's Medicaid 2.0 webpage

Read Joan Randell's opening remarks

Watch a video of the press conference

Media Coverage:

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The Star-Ledger

NJ Biz

NorthJersey.com

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