Joseph Vitale

TRENTON – A bill sponsored by Senator Joseph F. Vitale which would reinstate the Public Advocate as a watchdog agency to protect the interests of everyday New Jerseyans was approved by the Senate State Government Committee by a vote of 3-1, with 1 abstention.

“For nearly two decades before its dissolution, the Public Advocate stood up for the residents of New Jersey to protect the best interests of the people,” said Senator Vitale, D-Middlesex. “In New Jersey today, so often it seems that, whether it’s government corruption or private fraud, those interests are going by the wayside, while corruption and abuse are becoming a much more common phenomenon. We need a strong Public Advocate to again hold government and private interests accountable to the people of this State.”

TRENTON – A bill sponsored by Senators Joseph F. Vitale and Bob Smith to authorize local governments to issue five-year bonds for the reimbursement of an ambulance, rescue vehicle or similar public safety vehicle was approved by the Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee today by a vote of 3-0.

“This past weekend, we’ve seen firsthand the necessity of having well-equipped local rescue and first aid squads, as they played a key role in providing care to local residents who were affected by the winter storm,” said Senator Vitale, D-Middlesex. “Without quality rescue vehicles able to contend with snow drifts that were at least a foot high in most areas of the State, many of our first aiders would not have been able to reach those in need of serious medical assistance. Empowering local governments to fund rescue and first aid vehicle refurbishment is necessary to continue to allow local agencies to provide top notch services to our communities.”

TRENTON – A bill sponsored by Senators Joseph F. Vitale and Barbara Buono which would reform New Jersey’s FamilyCare health insurance system to cover uninsured children and working poor adults was unanimously approved by the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee today.

“New Jersey has a moral obligation to provide for our least fortunate citizens, and the FamilyCare insurance program was designed to address that need,” said Senator Vitale, D-Middlesex, the Chairman of the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee. “Unfortunately, there remains more than 200,000 children in this State who are uninsured, despite qualifying for FamilyCare health insurance coverage. We need a higher standard and a better success rate if we’re ever going to see FamilyCare live up to its promise of universal health care coverage for all working class residents in New Jersey.”

TRENTON – Senator Joseph F. Vitale and Assemblyman Robert Morgan, MD, announced today that they will make it a priority to reform New Jersey’s FamilyCare health insurance system in 2005, to increase participation and provide expanded coverage to New Jersey’s uninsured.

“New Jersey’s FamilyCare program is a boon to those who would otherwise be without hope, but frankly, it doesn’t go far enough,” said Senator Vitale, D-Middlesex, Chairman of the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee. “Despite our best efforts under the current system, there are still more than 264,000 children in this State who remain uninsured. We need to dramatically change our current system of identifying and enrolling children, to live up to our commitment of providing health insurance to those in need.”