In 2024, you won't need prescriptions for birth control in NJ

Published Dec 30, 2023 at 6:00 a.m. ET

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Published Dec 30, 2023 at 6:00 a.m. ET

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People in New Jersey will be able to purchase birth control pills without prescriptions under a law taking effect in the new year.

Other new state laws will make menstrual products more widely available to teens, require police to have licenses and undergo psychological tests, and raise the state’s minimum wage in 2024.

State Sen. Shirley K. Turner fought for seven years to get the birth control bill passed through the Legislature and signed by the governor, bringing New Jersey in line with 30 other states. It passed the Legislature last December with all Democrats and several Republicans voting in favor.

“Oh, it took more time than I had imagined, because there are so many hurdles to overcome anytime you want to make change,” Turner said. “And my belief is that if we truly want to prevent unintended, unplanned pregnancies, we need to make contraceptives more accessible to women so that they can have control over their bodies and plan their lives a lot easier.”

The bill was signed into law last January, but couldn’t go into effect until the state’s Board of Pharmacy and the Board of Medical Examiners wrote and approved new rules for its implementation. The boards are taking public comment until Feb. 2, and expect to finalize the rules in the months after that.

Pharmacists will be able to administer screenings to make sure the contraceptives are safe for each individual, and then sell them without prescriptions.

“It's safe, it's been in effect for 50 years, and there seems to be no problem with women taking contraceptives,” Turner said. “So they don't need to really go to a doctor just for a prescription. And when you do that, of course, you've got to pay. So it costs more money.”

Opposition from health care professionals made it difficult to pass the bill, Turner said.

“Doctors don't like to give up their turf in terms of writing prescriptions and seeing their patients, and they will hold on to them as long as they can, so it was an uphill battle in terms of getting this bill passed,” she said.

New Jersey’s law also makes contraceptives available to nonresidents.

Since the Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe. vs. Wade, “state legislatures around the country have put a stranglehold on freedom, passing laws limiting access to abortion, with eyes on restricting the right to contraception,” U.S. Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman said following the bill signing. “But in New Jersey, we both talk the talk and walk the walk.”

New Yorkers will be able to obtain birth control without prescriptions starting in November 2024, under a law Gov. Kathy Hochul signed in May.

Another law that takes effect in 2024 requires public schools to provide free menstrual products for girls in grades six through 12. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy signed the bill in August and it will take effect beginning July 1, meaning the products will be available in the 2024-25 school year.

A 2021 survey of college students by researchers from the University of Pennsylvania and George Mason University found 14.2% of respondents had experienced period poverty at some point in the past year, and 10% described experiencing it every month. They also found women experiencing period poverty were more likely to report moderate or severe depression.

Under the new law, schools will be required to provide menstrual products in at least half of all their female and gender-neutral bathrooms. The cost of the products will be paid by the state.

“My administration will continue to prioritize the mental and physical health of New Jersey students by taking a holistic approach to supporting their well-being,” Murphy said in a statement released when he signed the bill in August. “Promoting menstrual equity in our schools is one crucial component of our ongoing efforts to ensure the success of young people throughout our state and promote equity at every level.”

Police officers in New Jersey will be required to hold licenses under rules established by a state training commission, under a bill signed into law in 2022.

The licensing requirements include a psychologist test, a review of three years worth of social media posts, and prohibitions against membership in any group dedicated to overthrowing the government or discriminating against classes protected by state law. Anyone who has posted anything that expresses bias against a protected class of people would be excluded from serving as a police officer.

Earlier this year, the state attorney general’s office suspended a trooper who had tattoos featuring images and slogans associated with white supremacist groups. Attorney General Matthew Platkin said in prepared statements the licensing law would have prohibited such associations.

“When members of law enforcement espouse hate or discrimination, it destroys the trust we work so hard to build and nurture, and it jeopardizes the safety of our residents and officers,” he said at the time.

The commission could also revoke or fail to renew an officer’s license after conviction for any crime — with state officials specifically noting domestic violence offenses and crimes that preclude people from carrying firearms. Cops could lose their licenses for motor vehicle offenses under the influence of drugs or alcohol, or for multiple reckless driving offenses.

Police officers hired after Jan. 1 will need to apply for the licenses. Existing officers in good standing will automatically receive initial licenses, according to the new rules.

Licenses are normally good for three years, after which officers must reapply. However, the initial licenses given to existing officers will expire at staggered times, to avoid having all their applications come up at once, state officials said.

New Jersey is late to the game, becoming the 47th state to enact police licensing requirements.

"This landmark legislation will have real and transformative impact on policing in New Jersey, and will serve to significantly improve trust between law enforcement and the public they are sworn to protect," Attorney General Matthew Platkin said in a written statement after Murphy signed the law.

The state’s minimum wage will rise to $15.13 an hour for most workers on Jan. 1, completing a progression of increases that began in 2019.

When Murphy signed a bill allowing for the increases in early 2019, the minimum was $8.85. The law took the wage to $10 that July, and $11 at the start of 2020, with increases of at least $1 annually planned through the start of 2024 — or more, if the Consumer Price Index is high enough.

That progression has ended, but Murphy recently said he’d be open to a new law taking the minimum wage up to $18 or $20.

The minimum applies to most workers, but seasonal and small business employers have until 2026 to reach $15, agricultural workers have until 2027. Long-term care facilities are already required to pay $17.13, going up to $18.13 on Jan. 1.

The minimum wage in New York City, Long Island and Westchester is currently $15 an hour, and will increase to $16 on Jan. 1. The federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour, and hasn’t increased since 2009.

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