Source: TapInto.net
In a letter to the Federal Trade Commission, the New Jersey Legislative Black Caucus has called upon the regulatory body to approve the transaction between Saint Peter’s Health Care System and RWJBarnabas Health (“RWJBH”), which will lead to the creation of a premier academic medical center (Premier AMC) in New Brunswick.
“We believe that the Transaction will bring immense benefits for our constituents and for all New Jerseyans through the creation of the first premier academic medical center in a public-private partnership with Rutgers, the state university of New Jersey,” the letter stated. “In particular, the Transaction and the premier AMC it enables will improve health equity and access to care for historically underserved communities, lower healthcare costs, and increase the quality of care for patients, payers, employers, and families alike. The Transaction also will bring to New Jerseyans the caliber of physicians, medical research, and prestige enjoyed by their neighbors in New York and Pennsylvania.”
Rutgers and RWJBH announced in 2018, in connection with entering into their long-term Master Affiliation Agreement, that they were working to create a premier academic medical system, anchored by a premier AMC in the New Brunswick area. According to RWJBH, entry into this space is transformative; it will have a positive impact on NJ.
“The Black community in New Jersey needs improved access to care, particularly improved access to the highly complex, specialized care and clinical trials currently only available at out-of-state premier AMCs. Black New Jerseyans have worse health outcomes, shorter lifespans and higher death rates than other residents of New Jersey,” the Caucus noted in its letter. “In 2019, Black residents of New Jersey had a death rate of 814.8 per 100,000 people compared to 692.4 for White residents. The life expectancy for Black men in New Jersey is the lowest of any group at 73.7 years, and the life expectancy for Black women is 79.8 years compared to 82.6 years for White women.”
African Americans in New Jersey also die from heart disease and cancer, the leading causes of death in New Jersey, at higher rates than either New Jersey or U.S. rates overall. Racial inequities in infant mortality and maternal health have long plagued New Jersey as well. Although Black infants make up 13.4 percent of all births, they account for 28 percent of all deaths. Black women in New Jersey experience a 3.5 times higher rate of infant death compared to white women and are seven times more likely to die from maternity-related complications than White mothers. A Black infant is over three times more likely than a White infant to die before her or his first birthday.
“The creation of a premier AMC in New Jersey will save Black lives by enabling access to life-saving treatments and premier quality care and clinical trials,” stated the Caucus. “A premier AMC will bring together the best physicians and researchers, as well as the most cutting-edge care and clinical trials, right here in New Jersey and in our constituents’ backyards.”