Gopal Calls for Rutgers to Consider Alternatives to Layoffs

OCEAN TOWNSHIP - Senator Vin Gopal sent the following letter to President Robert Barchi of Rutgers University in response to the university's decision to lay off faculty and staff in the wake of the financial challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic:

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June 18, 2020

New Gopal Bill Expands Access to Psychologists Through Telehealth

OCEAN TOWNSHIP - Senator Vin Gopal is introducing new legislation that would expand patient access to psychological services by entering New Jersey into the Psychology Interjurisdictional Compact, an interstate agreement that would allow patients to see out-of-state psychologists through telehealth and telemedicine.

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June 11, 2020

Gopal Joins Downey to Sponsor Bill Requiring Insurance Companies to Cover Telehealth

OCEAN TOWNSHIP—Senator Vin Gopal today joined Assemblywoman Joann Downey in sponsoring legislation that would require all New Jersey health benefits plans, Medicaid and NJ FamilyCare, and the State Health Benefits Programs (SHBP) and School Employees’ Health Benefits Program (SEHBP) to provide expanded coverage for services provided using telemedicine and telehealth.

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June 09, 2020

Gopal and Zwicker Introduce Legislation Strengthening Protections of Vote-by-Mail Ballots

OCEAN TOWNSHIP - Senator Vin Gopal and Assemblyman Andrew Zwicker introduced new legislation this past Thursday that would expand vote-by-mail (VBM) education to New Jersey voters and poll workers, protect voters’ rights by preventing the rejection of VBM ballots due to faulty envelope design, and realize savings by removing VBM addresses that come back as undeliverable or that have not been used to vote by mail in at least two years.

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June 09, 2020

Gopal Introduces Bill Extending NJEDA Assistance to Veterans’ Organizations

OCEAN TOWNSHIP - Senator Vin Gopal, who serves as Senate Chair of Military and Veterans Affairs, introduced new legislation that would make New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) economic assistance programs for traditional nonprofit organizations available to 501c19 veterans’ organizations. These programs would be available during periods of emergency declared by the Governor and for the duration of economic disruptions due to the emergency.

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June 02, 2020

Gopal Calls for Governor to Allow Curbside Pickup at Libraries

OCEAN TOWNSHIP - Senator Vin Gopal and Assembly Members Eric Houghtaling and Joann Downey are calling for Governor Murphy to permit curbside pickup at New Jersey public libraries in order to promote public education and expand access to resources and educational materials during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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June 02, 2020

Gopal Introduces Bill Protecting Health Care Whistleblowers During COVID-19 Pandemic

OCEAN TOWNSHIP - Senator Vin Gopal introduced new legislation this Thursday protecting health care whistleblowers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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June 01, 2020

Committee Approves Gopal Bill Protecting Restaurants from Sky-High Takeout & Delivery Service Fees

OCEAN TOWNSHIP - This Tuesday, the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee approved bipartisan legislation introduced by Senator Vin Gopal aiming to protect New Jersey restaurants from rising takeout and delivery service fees charged by some third-party food delivery services similar to Grubhub, DoorDash, and UberEats. Under the bill, during the COVID-19 state of emergency, these service fees cannot exceed 20 percent of the price of the original order, or 10 percent of the price of the original order if the restaurant is using its own driver for the delivery.

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June 01, 2020

Senate Passes Gopal BIll Allowing COVID-19 Testing at Pharmacies

OCEAN TOWNSHIP - The Senate on Thursday approved legislation introduced by Senator Vin Gopal that would codify a recent administrative order by Acting Director of the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs Paul Rodriguez that allows licensed pharmacists to order and administer COVID-19 tests that have been authorized and approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

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May 18, 2020

Gopal Bill Protecting Restaurants from High Delivery Service Fees Passes Senate

OCEAN TOWNSHIP - This Thursday, the State Senate passed bipartisan legislation introduced by Senator Vin Gopal aiming to protect New Jersey restaurants from rising takeout and delivery service fees charged by some third-party food delivery services similar to Grubhub, DoorDash, and UberEats. Under the bill (S2437), during the COVID-19 state of emergency, these service fees cannot exceed 10 percent of the price of the original order if the restaurant is using its own driver for the delivery, or 20 percent of the price of the original order otherwise.

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May 14, 2020

Senate Approves Gopal Bill Legalizing Alcohol Takeout and Delivery

OCEAN TOWNSHIP - The State Senate today approved legislation introduced by Senator Vin Gopal that would allow licensed restaurants and bars to sell alcoholic beverages through takeout and delivery and allow distilleries to sell alcoholic beverages through takeout during the current state of emergency due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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May 14, 2020

Gopal “Hospitality Emergency Loan Program” Approved by Senate

OCEAN TOWNSHIP - The Senate today approved legislation sponsored by Senator Vin Gopal that would establish a New Jersey Hospitality Emergency Loan Program, which would provide immediate financial assistance for struggling hospitality businesses during the COVID-19 emergency. The program would be based on the Delaware program of the same name.

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May 14, 2020

Gopal BIll Allowing COVID-19 Testing at Pharmacies Advances in Senate

OCEAN TOWNSHIP - The Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee today approved legislation introduced by Senator Vin Gopal that would allow licensed pharmacists to order and administer COVID-19 tests authorized and approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

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May 13, 2020