Sponsored by:
Senator RONALD L. RICE
District 28 (Essex)
Senator NIA H. GILL
District 34 (Essex and Passaic)
Senator KRISTIN M. CORRADO
District 40 (Bergen, Essex, Morris and Passaic)
Assemblyman BENJIE E. WIMBERLY
District 35 (Bergen and Passaic)
Assemblywoman VERLINA REYNOLDS-JACKSON
District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)
Assemblywoman NANCY J. PINKIN
District 18 (Middlesex)
Co-Sponsored by:
Senators Turner, Bateman, Cardinale, Doherty, Singleton, Pennacchio, Singer, Testa, Assemblywomen Quijano and McKnight
SYNOPSIS
Requires hospitals to report COVID-19 demographic data.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning COVID-19 demographic data.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. The Commissioner of Health shall require hospitals licensed pursuant to Title 26 of the Revised Statutes to report to the Department of Health demographic data, including the age, ethnicity, gender, and race of persons in this State who have tested positive for the coronavirus disease 2019 or who have died from the coronavirus disease 2019, as well as the number of persons who attempt to get treatment for the coronavirus disease 2019, the number of persons who are admitted for treatment for the coronavirus disease 2019, and the number of persons who attempt to get tested for the coronavirus disease 2019 and were turned away, until the end of the State’s declared public health emergency related to the coronavirus disease 2019. The commissioner shall compile the reported Statewide data by county and municipality.
b. The Department of Health shall publish on its Internet website the demographic data received pursuant to subsection a. of this section. The department shall update its Internet website on a daily basis by publishing the latest demographic data received by the Commissioner of Health until the end of the State’s declared public health emergency related to the coronavirus disease 2019.
c. The Commissioner of Health shall prepare and submit a report compiling the data reported pursuant to this section to the Governor and to the Legislature, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1).
2. This act shall take effect immediately and shall expire upon the submission of the report as required pursuant to subsection b. of section 1 of this act.
STATEMENT
This bill requires hospitals to report COVID-19 demographic data. Under the bill, the Commissioner of Health is to require hospitals to report to the Department of Health demographic data, including the age, ethnicity, gender, and race of persons in this State who have tested positive for the coronavirus disease 2019 or who have died from the coronavirus disease 2019, as well as the number of persons who attempt to get treatment for the coronavirus disease 2019, the number of persons who are admitted for treatment for the coronavirus disease 2019, and the number of persons who attempt to get tested for the coronavirus disease 2019 and were turned away, until the end of the State’s declared public health emergency related to the coronavirus disease 2019.
The bill provides that the Department of Health is to publish the demographic data on its Internet website. The department is to update its Internet website on a daily basis by publishing the latest demographic data received by the Commissioner of Health until the end of the State’s declared public health emergency related to the coronavirus disease 2019.
The reported Statewide data is to be compiled by county and municipality. The Commissioner of Health is to prepare and submit a report compiling the data reported pursuant to the bill’s provisions to the Governor and to the Legislature.