BUONO-VITALE BILL TO ESTABLISH MEDICAL HOME PROJECT IN NJ ADVANCES

TRENTON – A bill sponsored by Senators Barbara Buono and Joseph F. Vitale which would establish a three-year medical home demonstration project to enhance primary, patient-centered acute care for Medicaid recipients was unanimously approved by the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee today.

“The medical home demonstration project will provide enhanced access to primary care in the most appropriate, cost effective setting,” said Senator Buono, D-Middlesex, and Chairwoman of the Senate Budget Committee. “This comprehensive healthcare planning process includes a partnership between the physician, patient, and the patient’s family. Carefully integrating these elements of patient care will provide improved access to preventive and primary medical services for the uninsured, thereby reducing the number of Emergency Room visits for primary care services and the cost of those visits to the State.”

VITALE-SWEENEY-WEINBERG BILL TO PUBLICIZE HOSPITAL ERRORS APPROVED IN ASSEMBLY

TRENTON – A bill sponsored by Senators Joseph F. Vitale, Loretta Weinberg, and Senate Majority Leader Steve Sweeney which would require the Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) to publicly report certain preventable patient safety errors at New Jersey’s hospitals was approved by the Assembly today by a vote of 76-1.

“Health care consumers have a right to know when it comes to key patient safety indicators at health care facilities around the State of New Jersey,” said Senator Vitale, D-Middlesex, and Chairman of the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee. “Right now, we collect information confidentially to help identify the best practices to create a safer health care environment for patients, but I think the next step in patient safety is giving consumers the information they need to make the best personalized health care choices they can. Through this bill, we’re augmenting our current patient safety efforts and educating and empowering health care consumers to make the best choices for their own care.”

VITALE STATEMENT ON HEALTH CARE CUTS IN FY 2010 BUDGET

TRENTON – Senator Joseph F. Vitale, D-Middlesex, and Chairman of the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee and a member of the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee, issued the following statement today at a news conference at the Statehouse with New Jersey Citizen Action on proposed cuts to health care programs like NJ FamilyCare, Medicaid prescription drug benefits, and the AIDS Drug Distribution Program in the FY 2010 Budget:

“New Jersey government is facing one of the biggest challenges in modern history in advancing a fair and balanced budget in the face of a multi-billion dollar deficit in revenues. Our convictions are going to be tested, as we come to terms with the fact that we simply don’t have enough money to fund all of the State’s priorities at the level that we have in the past.

“However, certain funding requests are more than just line items in a budget. These are programs that mean the difference between life and death for those struggling to make ends meet in this difficult economy.

MEDIA ADVISORY - SENATOR VITALE TO MEET WITH UNION COUNTY SENIOR CITIZENS GROUP TOMORROW

MOUNTAINSIDE – Senator Joseph F. Vitale, the Chairman of the New Jersey Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee is scheduled to address the annual conference of the Senior Citizens Council of Union County tomorrow, May 7, 2009 to discuss health care issues in the Garden State.

Senator Vitale will speak to the conference attendees during the lunch break, which begins at 12:15. The conference is being held this year at L’Affaire Fine Catering reception hall, 1099 Route 22 East in Mountainside, New Jersey. The event is expected to draw more than 300 seniors from around Union County.

VITALE URGES RESIDENTS TO LOOK FOR SYMPTOMS OF SWINE FLU

Health Committee Chairman Pledges to Make State Resources Available to Fight Pandemic

WOODBRIDGE – Noting the seriousness of a potential swine flu outbreak in New Jersey, Senator Joseph F. Vitale, the Chairman of the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee, urged State residents to be on the look-out for symptoms, and said that he is working to make sure the State has the resources to handle a possible pandemic.

“With one of the highest population densities in the nation, a swine flu outbreak would spread very quickly through New Jersey, particularly endangering children, seniors and people with compromised immune systems,” said Senator Vitale, D-Middlesex. “While most of the reported cases in the United States have been minor, we need to be aware of the dangers and take every precaution against spreading the disease. In the meantime, I’m going to work with State health officials to make sure that we have enough medicine on hand to treat those who come down with the illness or are at risk of exposure.”

VITALE STATEMENT ON GOVERNOR’S FAMILY CARE ANNOUNCEMENT

PATERSON – Senator Joseph F. Vitale, D-Middlesex, and Chairman of the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee, issued the following statement today on the Governor’s announcement of a partnership to use State income tax information to reach out to more than a quarter of a million New Jerseyans who qualify for – but are not enrolled in – the NJ FamilyCare health coverage program:

“Particularly as New Jersey families are dealing with the downturn in the economy, the affordability of quality health care is a major concern for folks struggling to make ends meet. Unfortunately, many believe that preventive care is simply out of their reach, and they ignore the health problems of themselves and their children until they have to visit the emergency room for care.

“As we know, that sort of health care model is expensive, inefficient and dangerous to the health of the people we’re trying to serve.

VITALE STATEMENT IN RESPONSE TO KEAN CRITICISM ON ARTS FUNDING CUTS

TRENTON – Senator Joseph F. Vitale, D-Middlesex, Chairman of the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee, and a member of Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee, issued the following statement today in response to criticism from former Governor Tom Kean on Governor Corzine’s proposed cut to arts funding below statutorily-mandated levels:

“The arts are absolutely important. Cultural identity is one of the key measures of a society, and there is no doubt that arts funding is not only a boon to the economy, but also helps encourage students – particularly in struggling urban areas – to achieve their maximum potential.

“However, during this global economic crisis, we have to recognize that New Jersey cannot afford to fund every worthy cause, and must prioritize its funding. Governor Corzine has proposed funding arts at a level that’s roughly $3 million less than last year, while still managing to provide $25 million in funding for projects in the proposed budget. Meanwhile, we’re struggling to fund every state priority, from health care to public safety to education.

State Sen. Bob Smith (D-Piscataway)

EDISON – At the Middlesex County Democratic Organization’s (MCDO) annual convention at the Pines Manor here tonight there was palpable frontrunner fever for Sen. Barbara Buono (D-Metuchen) as the state’s first Democratic Party candidate for lieutenant governor.

“No one but (Gov.) Jon Corzine can make that choice, but Barbara Buono would be a magnificent lieutenant governor,” veteran state Sen. Bob Smith (D-Piscataway) told PolitickerNJ.com. “I think her chairmanship of the budget committee gives her a unique perspective, and she’s very well liked in Middlesex.”

In his introduction of the governor to the convention, Smith billed Buono as a fierce Corzine ally.

VITALE-SWEENEY-WEINBERG BILL TO PUBLICIZE HOSPITAL ERRORS APPROVED

TRENTON – A bill sponsored by Senators Joseph F. Vitale, Loretta Weinberg, and Senate Majority Leader Steve Sweeney which would require the Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) to publicly report certain preventable patient safety errors at New Jersey’s hospitals was approved by the Senate today by a vote of 38-0.

“As we work to make health care safer for patients in New Jersey, we have to recognize that one of the biggest drivers of patient safety is a free and open marketplace,” said Senator Vitale, D-Middlesex, and Chairman of the Senate Health Committee. “Publicizing patient safety records of hospitals would allow health care consumers to make informed decisions about their medical care. This bill would provide essential consumer information to New Jersey residents and would put more pressure on health care facilities to do more to ensure patient safety.”

VITALE WELCOMES PALLONE EFFORT TO ENGAGE STAKEHOLDERS IN FIXING NATIONAL HEALTH CARE SYSTEM

TRENTON – Senator Joseph F. Vitale, D-Middlesex, and Chairman of the New Jersey Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee, issued the following statement today in support of Congressman Frank Pallone’s announcement that he’s engaging New Jersey stakeholders in discussions on how to fix the nation’s broken health care system:

“I applaud Congressman Pallone for his approach to building a better national health care model – one which meets the needs of all Americans, and ensures access to quality care for everyone, regardless of age, race or income level. In New Jersey, the Congressman will be able to tap into a wealth of knowledge about how to do health care right, because we are on the front lines of ensuring adequate health care for all New Jerseyans.