President’s Letter

On Feb 25, 2014

I had an interesting social conversation this past weekend – a small business owner, a private contractor and a retiree were all discussing Obamacare. They had strong opinions, and each of my acquaintances had specific frustrations with the law. And yet, each one of them agreed that reform was needed to correct the course of rising numbers of uninsured and climbing healthcare costs.

That pretty much sums up the feelings of New Jersey’s healthcare community as we enter 2014, a key year in the ongoing implementation of the Affordable Care Act. No one would argue that the law is perfect, but there are many positives along with the negatives.

We are committed to exploring each positive aspect of the new law, and also to working through any of the negative impacts. We cannot afford to stand still, and our nation cannot afford the status quo.  For those of us in healthcare, we must think like businesses while delivering an essential social service. And so, as Obamacare moves forward, we worry about the increased bad debt providers will experience, at the same time that we celebrate our advances in quality, patient safety and efficiency that were among the law’s incentives.

Our hospital and healthcare CEOs face these realities each day as they oversee 140,000 employees and deliver more than 18 million “episodes of care” in our inpatient and outpatient settings annually. You can read more about their perspectives in this special section in the article, “The Affordable Care Act in 2014: What Now?”

NJHA is proud to count every acute care hospital in the state among our members. But NJHA is more than acute care hospitals. Our membership ranks also include specialty hospitals, nursing homes, adult day care facilities, assisted living facilities, continuing care retirement communities, home health agencies, hospice providers, Programs for All Inclusive Care for the Elderly and pediatric medical day facilities – more than 350 members total. We applaud their tradition of caring and thank them for their invaluable contributions to the health, well-being and economic strength of the Garden State.

Sincerely,

Elizabeth “Betsy” Ryan
President and CEO
New Jersey Hospital Association