New Jersey's Division of Developmental Disabilities raised Medicaid fee-for-service rates on Jan. 1, 2024, to fund a wage increase of about $1.75 an hour for DSPs and DSP supervisors, according to a division bulletin dated Dec. 27, 2023.
How the raise worked
The bulletin said the increase had two parts: $1.25 an hour to keep up with New Jersey's mandatory minimum wage increase, and about $0.50 an hour in additional funding from the fiscal 2024 state budget. The higher rates applied to services including community-based supports, individual supports, day habilitation, respite and supported employment.
Provider agencies had to pass the money through to DSPs and supervisors as an increase to their base wage no later than March 1, 2024, retroactive to Jan. 1. The $0.50 portion also applied to July through December 2023. Because no federal match was available for that period, the division said it would send providers a one-time payment, which they had to pass on as a one-time bonus by June 30, 2024. Providers had to report on both pass-throughs in the fall of 2024.
Why this mattered for providers and DSPs
New Jersey ties its DSP raises to a required wage pass-through with reporting, so the money is meant to show up in paychecks rather than agency budgets. For DSPs, the raise came on top of the state minimum wage increase instead of being swallowed by it.