Jersey tax on cosmetic and large OP (outpatient) surgery ahead:
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
New Jersey's state legislature has decided to tax certain surgical procedures as one way of bridging the state's budget gap. One bill that recently cleared both legislative chambers assesses a 6% gross receipts tax on cosmetic medical procedures, defined by the state as any procedures that do not meaningfully promote the proper functioning of the body or prevent or treat illness or disease. A second bill slaps a 3.5% gross receipts tax on ambulatory surgical centres, or outpatient (OP) surgery units that have gross receipts higher than $300,000. Although a coalition of medical groups is making a last-ditch effort to overturn the bills they describe as arbitrary and discriminatory, New Jersey Governor James McGreevey is expected to sign the legislation.