New Medicaid Policy Center and Office of Medicaid Innovation to Transform NJ’s Medicaid Program

Building on recommendations from the Nicholson-funded Medicaid 2.0 report, two recently-announced initiatives will fundamentally reshape and improve the Medicaid program in New Jersey.

On February 7, the New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute announced the launch of a Medicaid Policy Center (MPC) committed to advancing the quality and cost effectiveness of the state’s Medicaid program. The Center, which will conduct independent research and analysis and propose policy solutions, is funded by a grant from The Nicholson Foundation.

Concurrent with the launch of the MPC, the Department of Human Services (which oversees New Jersey’s Medicaid program) announced the creation of an Office of Medicaid Innovation within DHS. The office will provide a unique platform for collaboration with the MPC to bring its recommendations to scale, including supporting patient-centered and value-based models of care that reward providers for good outcomes.

New Jersey’s Medicaid program provides health coverage for nearly 1.8 million of the state’s residents, including forty percent of children in the state. Its $17 billion annual budget, financed by the Federal and State governments, accounts for nearly twenty percent of New Jersey’s total budget.