Business Report: Health insurance premiums, higher minimum wage

September 22, 2022

Teachers and school employees are the latest workers facing sharply higher health insurance premiums. The state’s School Employees’ Health Benefits Commission voted to increase rates by about 15% for next year. Last week, a separate commission approved double-digit premium increases for other public workers. NJ Spotlight News’ budget and finance reporter John Reitmeyer says some school board officials are raising concerns about possible cutbacks due to the added cost.

New Jersey’s statewide minimum wage will increase by $1.13 to $14.13 an hour starting in January. The state is on a path to a $15 minimum wage by 2024, under a law signed by Gov. Phil Murphy in 2019. The law mandates wage increases of $1 per hour or more if there is a significant increase in inflation. That’s why the increase will be higher for 2023.

Data from the U.S. Census Bureau shows 22% of New Jerseyans worked from home in 2021, a more than fourfold increase over 2019. New Jersey has a greater share of people working from home than most other states. Rutgers University Professor Carl Van Horn, director of the John J. Heldrich Center for Workforce Development, doesn’t see much changing in the near future.

NJ Spotlight News, September 20, 2022

Recent Posts

NJSPL Report: Higher Education in New Jersey – A Policy Review

By Angie Nga Le, Stuart Shapiro, and Elizabeth Cooner New Jersey’s state higher education plan, “Where Opportunity Meets Innovation – A Student-Centered Vision for New Jersey Higher Education” (the Plan), was introduced in 2019. It envisions an ecosystem where every...

Healthcare, Policy, and the Opioid Crisis: Bridging Gaps in Access

Healthcare, Policy, and the Opioid Crisis: Bridging Gaps in Access with Zoe Lindenfeld This week on EJB Talks, new Bloustein School Assistant Professor Zoe Lindenfeld talks to Dean Stuart Shapiro about her research on substance use disorders, particularly the opioid...

Public Policy and Surveillance Tech

By Marc Pfeiffer ICMA.org, February 1, 2025 I asked Claude.ai to define surveillance technology. In response, it replied, “devices, systems, or software that are used to monitor, track, and collect information on people, places, or things.” Municipalities use a wide...

Lindenfeld & Mauri Find Uptick for MOUD at FQHCs

Introduction To reduce morbidity and mortality among individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD), the evidence is strongest for medications for OUD (MOUD), which include methadone, buprenorphine, and naltrexone. Federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) are essential...

NJSPL: Ensuring Accurate & Equitable Vaccination Info

By Yonaira Rivera and Vivek Singh  In today’s digital world, large language models like ChatGPT are important sources of healthcare information, particularly for those who face barriers like insurance issues or language constraints. As part of the IMPACT-NJ project,...

Upcoming Events

Event Series Student Services

Bloustein Librarian Open Office Hours

Bloustein School, Civic Square Building 33 Livingston Avenue, New Brunswick, NJ, United States

Have a research or library question you need assistance with? Visit Open Office Hours with Bloustein Librarian Julia Maxwell. Every Tuesday from 12:00 - 1:00 pm in the Civic Square […]