Committee Statement to Senate, No. 3502 — Senate Commerce Committee

Summary

Statement to Senate, No. 3502, with committee amendments, from the Senate Commerce Committee of the State of New Jersey, dated May 18, 2026, reporting Senate Bill No. 3502 favorably. The statement says the amended bill requires health insurers and the State Medicaid program to cover medical expenses incurred in the treatment of stuttering, including habilitative speech therapy and rehabilitative speech therapy. It says coverage is required if the treatment is medically necessary, or neurogenic or developmental, as determined by a medical doctor or licensed speech-language pathologist, and applies to services delivered in-person or through telemedicine or telehealth.

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     SENATE COMMERCE COMMITTEE

                    STATEMENT TO

                  SENATE, No. 3502
                   with committee amendments



 STATE OF NEW JERSEY
                      DATED: MAY 18, 2026

    The Senate Commerce Committee reports favorably and with
committee amendments Senate Bill No. 3502.
    As amended, this bill requires health insurers (health, hospital
and medical service corporations, commercial individual and group
health insurers, health maintenance organizations, health benefits
plans issued pursuant to the New Jersey Individual Health Coverage
and Small Employer Health Benefits Programs, the State Health
Benefits Program, and the School Employees’ Health Benefits
Program) and the State Medicaid program to provide coverage for
medical expenses incurred in the treatment of stuttering, including
habilitative speech therapy and rehabilitative speech therapy. The
coverage is required if the treatment is medically necessary, or
neurogenic or developmental, as determined by the covered
person’s medical doctor or licensed speech-language pathologist.
The bill requires coverage to be provided whether the services are
delivered in-person or through telemedicine or telehealth.
    Pursuant to the bill, “habilitative speech therapy" means speech
therapy that helps a person keep, learn, or improve skills and
functioning for daily living; and “rehabilitative speech therapy"
means speech therapy that helps a person restore or improve skills
and functioning for daily living that have been lost or impaired.

COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS:
     The committee amended the bill to:
     (1) incorporate coverage for stuttering that is neurogenic or
developmental;
     (2) add a definition of “licensed speech-language pathologist” and
stipulate that a licensed speech-language pathologist can determine if
coverage for stuttering is medically necessary or neurogenic or
developmental;
     (3) remove the prohibitions against prior authorization or other
utilization management requirements and against cost-sharing; and
     (4) make technical updates.


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