A 3434 New Jersey General Assembly · 2026-2027 Regular Session

Creates "New Jersey Dialysis Patient Support Person Accommodation Act."

This bill (A 3434) requires New Jersey dialysis centers to allow patients receiving treatment to be accompanied by a designated support person who can assist with communication, mobility, and care decisions. It directly affects dialysis patients and the centers providing their treatment. Centers must create and display clear written policies for support person access, implement reasonable health/safety rules (without unnecessary restrictions), and train staff on these policies. The New Jersey Department of Health will enforce the law, investigate complaints about denied access, and impose penalties for non-compliance. The law takes effect immediately upon passage.

Issues: ✓ Healthcare

Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

May 2026

General Assembly Passage

Jun 2026

Senate Passage

Governor

Introduced Jan 13, 2026 Last action Jun 30, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Introduced → Reprint · 6 edits

MODERATE

The First Reprint of A3434 adds a detailed definition of 'support person' in new Section 1c, clarifying age requirements, decision-making limits, and privacy consent rules. It also narrows the disclosure requirement so that only a summary of policies (not full policies) must be posted and made available. The bill was amended by the General Assembly on June 11, 2026.

DEFINITION

New Section 1c defines 'support person' as a person 18 or older selected by the patient to accompany them in areas where communication normally occurs. It clarifies that a support person may or may not be next of kin, guardian, or legally authorized decision-maker.

REQUIREMENT

New Section 1c(2) restricts a support person's authority: they cannot make decisions on behalf of the patient unless they are the patient's next of kin, guardian, legally authorized decision-maker, or health care representative under the New Jersey Advance Directives for Health Care Act or Mental Health Care Act.

New Section 1c(3) requires written consent from the patient (or their legally authorized decision-maker/health care representative) before a dialysis center may disclose protected health information to a support person.

Section 3a changed 'measures' to 'policies and procedures,' broadening the terminology for what dialysis centers must establish regarding support person presence.

Section 3b changed the requirement from posting the full written policies to posting only a summary of the policies, reducing the disclosure burden on dialysis centers.

ELIGIBILITY

New Section 1c(4) allows a patient to name more than one support person but requires designating only one as the primary support person.

Floor votes

How they voted

This bill passed the General Assembly by voice vote (no roll call recorded).

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

Jun 30, 2026

Lower · Passed

Passed by the Assembly (79-0-0)

lower

Jun 11, 2026

Lower · Passed

Assembly Floor Amendment Passed (Simmons)

lower

May 11, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported out of Assembly Committee, 2nd Reading

lower

Jan 13, 2026

Introduced

Introduced, Referred to Assembly Health Committee

lower

2 primary · 1 co-sponsor