New Jersey program
New Jersey Charity Care
New Jersey Charity Care reduces eligible hospital bills when income and savings meet state rules.
What it is
New Jersey Charity Care reduces eligible hospital bills when income and savings meet state rules.
Charity Care can cover the full patient share of eligible hospital bills through 200% of poverty. Reduced charges are available above that through 300%. The hospital checks savings, insurance and each bill. Its own assistance policy may help more families, including some with insurance.
Eligibility rules
- The program covers eligible services at New Jersey acute-care hospitals.
- At the date of service, asset ceilings are $7,500 for one person and $15,000 for a family.
- Both uninsured patients and insured patients whose coverage is unlikely to pay the bill in full must be screened.
What you get
- Free eligible hospital care at or below 200% of poverty.
- Reduced eligible charges above 200% through 300% of poverty.
- A decision within 10 business days of a complete application.
What the help covers
- For eligible charges, the patient share is 0% through 200% of poverty, 20% above 200% through 225%, 40% above 225% through 250%, 60% above 250% through 275%, and 80% above 275% through 300%.
- In the partial-help bands, if your eligible hospital bills for the year come to more than 30% of family income, the part above 30% can be reduced further.
- Hospital assistance does not automatically cover a separate physician's bill.
If you decide to apply
- You can ask the treating hospital's financial counselor for the Hospital Care Payment Assistance application.
- For that discussion, it helps to have income, savings and insurance records for the date of service ready. You can ask which separate bills need another application.
The treating hospital, under state regulation · Official page ↗
After you ask
- The 10-business-day decision period starts with a complete application.
- The hospital must screen for Charity Care before sending eligible remaining costs to the Catastrophic Fund.
Good to know
The usual Charity Care deadline is one year after inpatient discharge or the outpatient service. A hospital’s own policy may allow more time. Savings and other coverage can affect eligibility, and the approval letter should identify the bills and dates covered.
Other details
- The usual one-year Charity Care application period runs from inpatient discharge or the outpatient service date. Approval length is a different question: the hospital’s written decision should state the services and dates covered.
- NJ Charity Care applies to eligible New Jersey hospital charges. An out-of-state treating hospital uses its own assistance policy. Separate doctors' bills may need a different request.
Federal background: Hospital financial assistance.
Official sources
- Charity Care eligibility regulations (posting of February 27, 2026)
- Charity Care overview
- Catastrophic Illness in Children Relief Fund: FAQ
- Official evidence for NJ.charity_care (reviewed September 21, 2026)
- Official evidence for NJ.charity_care (reviewed September 21, 2026)
- Official evidence for NJ.charity_care (reviewed September 21, 2026)
- Official evidence for NJ.charity_care (reviewed September 21, 2026)
- Official evidence for NJ.charity_care (reviewed September 21, 2026)
- Official evidence for NJ.charity_care (reviewed September 21, 2026)
- Official evidence for NJ.charity_care (reviewed September 21, 2026)
“Could you screen our hospital bills for Charity Care? What would we still owe, which bills are separate, and could you help us apply if we qualify?”
Why I’m asking: I need to understand the hospital's help before treating the bill as the amount we must pay.
More background and detailed requirements
Additional program information and published rules
Who does what
The three parts, side by side. The agency decides; nobody on this page does.
You
Ask for the application, give income and savings at the date of service, and apply within a year of the service.
Your social worker
The hospital financial counsellor screens you, and must screen you before referring anything to the Catastrophic Fund.
The care team
Records and letters when the application asks for them.
- Who decides
- The treating hospital, applying the state regulation.
- Ask your social worker
- “Can you screen us for New Jersey Charity Care here? What is our share on the scale, and what is the decision date?”
How to apply
First step: Ask the hospital financial counsellor for the Hospital Care Payment Assistance application.
- Ask the hospital financial counsellor for the Hospital Care Payment Assistance application this week.
- Ask for a decision date: the rule is 10 business days from a complete application.
- If you are on the reduced-charge scale, ask about the high-cost branch once costs pass 30 cents in the dollar of yearly income.
Official application / program page ↗
Where it starts: Ask the hospital's financial counsellor for the Hospital Care Payment Assistance application.
What to gather
- Proof of income at the date of service
- Bank balances at the date of service
- The hospital bills themselves
How long: 10 business days from a complete application.
What a yes looks like
A notice saying the bill is written off, or naming your share: 20, 40, 60 or 80 cents in the dollar.
What a no looks like, and the next move
Over the line on income or savings. Ask about the high-cost branch and about the Catastrophic Fund.
Watch out
- Apply within one year of the service. The deadline is real.
- Savings above $7,500 for one person or $15,000 for a family can rule you out even when income fits.
- It covers hospital bills. A separate doctor's bill can still arrive.
Dates that change this
2026-02-27: The regulation was posted February 27, 2026. The date the statewide monthly income table is adopted each year was not published.
The numbers and the rules
The arcane layer, kept on purpose. Checked September 11, 2026.
What it is worth
Free hospital care at or under twice the poverty line; 20 to 80 cents in the dollar up to three times it; a decision within 10 business days of a complete application.
- $20 — Patient share, income 201% to 225% of the poverty line
- $40 — Patient share, income 226% to 250% of the poverty line
- $60 — Patient share, income 251% to 275% of the poverty line
- $80 — Patient share, income 276% to 300% of the poverty line
- $7,500 — Asset ceiling for one person at the date of service
- $15,000 — Asset ceiling for a family at the date of service
- $30 — Share of yearly income above which a reduced-charge applicant's costs are fully covered
- $10 — Decision time from a complete application
Covers: Medically necessary inpatient and outpatient hospital care
Legal protection: An insured patient whose plan is unlikely to pay the bill in full must be screened as well
What it costs the family: Nothing under twice the poverty line; a fixed share of the bill above it.
The eligibility facts, as published
- Income
- free care at or under 200% of the HHS poverty guidelines; reduced charges through 300%
- Resources
- $7,500 for an individual, $15,000 for a family, measured at the date of service
- Insurance status condition
- an uninsured patient, or an insured patient whose coverage is unlikely to pay the bill in full, must be screened
- Deadline
- apply at the treating hospital within one year of the service
- Residency
- services at a New Jersey acute-care hospital
The trap: There is a deadline: apply at the treating hospital within one year of the service. Savings above $7,500 for one person or $15,000 for a family can rule a household out even when income fits.
Where I read this
- Charity Care eligibility regulations (posting of February 27, 2026) — New Jersey Department of Health, read September 10, 2026
- Charity Care overview — New Jersey Department of Health, read September 10, 2026
- Catastrophic Illness in Children Relief Fund: FAQ — New Jersey Department of Human Services, read September 10, 2026