The New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH) has implemented new regulations to create a single, integrated license for outpatient health care facilities. This change, developed in partnership with the New Jersey Department of Human Services (NJDHS), aims to simplify the process for providers offering primary care, mental health, and addiction treatment services under one roof.
Acting Health Commissioner Jeff Brown stated, “Health care works best when patients are treated as a whole person, not a collection of separate problems. These rules put people first, by letting them walk through one door and receive all the care they need. That means less red tape for providers to meet their patients’ needs. And it means a simpler path to better outcomes for New Jerseyans.”
Human Services Commissioner Sarah Adelman added, “Outdated rules have made it harder for clinicians to deliver coordinated primary and behavioral health care to their patients. Integrated licensing puts the patient first and removes barriers for providers, so they can focus on delivering the care their patient needs. This enables better access and, ultimately, better patient experiences and outcomes.”
Previously, facilities that offered multiple types of care had to obtain three different licenses with varying requirements. They were also required to maintain separate entrances and medical records depending on the type of service provided. The new rules address these issues by allowing unified medical records and eliminating requirements for separate spaces and entrances.
The reform is expected to benefit Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), outpatient mental health and substance use disorder providers, as well as licensed primary care clinics. Key changes include allowing shared treatment spaces and infrastructure, expanding access to withdrawal management services and medications such as buprenorphine, enabling qualified physicians to provide reproductive health services without extra barriers, removing the need for a staff OB/GYN in certain cases, and integrating counseling into primary care without full behavioral health licensure.
A waiver that made Medications for Opioid Use Disorder (MOUD) more accessible will now be permanent under these new rules.
This regulatory shift builds on previous state initiatives aimed at addressing opioid use disorder. These include decriminalizing harm reduction supplies, expanding harm reduction centers across New Jersey, distributing naloxone anonymously at 675 pharmacies statewide at no cost to recipients, and being the first state in the country where paramedics are allowed to treat opioid addiction in the field using buprenorphine.
