New Jersey's integrated outpatient license is a single Department of Health license, under N.J.A.C. 8:43K (effective April 6, 2026), that lets an outpatient facility provide primary care, mental health and substance use disorder services under one license listing the services it is authorized to provide. It is for federally qualified health centers, primary care clinics and outpatient mental health and addiction providers that are applying, renewing or combining services under the new rule. Integral Healthcare Solutions (IHS) consolidates your separate policy systems into one set built to New Jersey's integrated outpatient rules; your clinical leads approve it.

What is N.J.A.C. 8:43K?

N.J.A.C. 8:43K is the “Manual of Standards for Licensure of Outpatient and Integrated Care Facilities,” issued by the New Jersey Department of Health, Division of Certificate of Need and Licensing. In announcing it, the Department described “rules creating a single, integrated license for outpatient health care facilities,” and said the license “will benefit several types of outpatient facilities, including Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), outpatient mental health and substance use disorder providers, and licensed primary care clinics,” and that the rules enable providers to deliver “integrated primary care, mental health, and addiction treatment services.”

The adoption notice gives the dates: “Adopted: January 15, 2026” and “Effective Date: April 6, 2026,” with an expiration of “April 6, 2033.” The same rulemaking amended N.J.A.C. 8:43E and 8:121 and repealed N.J.A.C. 10:161B, the prior outpatient substance use disorder rule. The statutory basis is the single license law, N.J.S.A. 26:2H-5.1g.

The Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS) summarizes the scope in an overview deck: “The rule allows certain outpatient facilities to provide behavioral health, mental health, substance use disorder, opioid treatment, primary care, reproductive health, and pediatric services under the appropriate licensure structure.”

Behavioral health programs answer to two rules. Per the DMHAS deck, behavioral health programs, including opioid treatment programs, must “have a contract or affiliation agreement with DMHAS,” “be licensed by DOH,” and comply with both “N.J.A.C. 8:43K, Manual of Standards for Licensure of Outpatient and Integrated Care Facilities (DOH)” and “N.J.A.C. 10:36, Behavioral Health Program Service Standards (DHS/DMHAS).”

Who needs it and what triggers it

8:43K covers single-service and multi-service outpatient facilities alike. The DMHAS deck sorts applicants by date, and each date is a trigger:

• New applications. The license application is Form CN-7: “Submit CN-7 application form along with applicable fees found at N.J.A.C. 8:43K-2.8.” Applications received after May 1, 2026 need “Updated Policies and Procedures that align with 8:43K,” and the deck says applicants “Can expect full applications to be assigned beginning 07/01/26.”
• Applications received between April 6 and May 1, 2026: “All applications will be returned with the expectation that the applicant submit a new CN-7 application and revised the policies and procedures that align with 8:43K regulations.”
• Applications received before April 6, 2026 were “Reviewed under previous regulations, will receive an Integrated license under 8:43K” and “Need to come into compliance with 8:43K by inspection.”
• Renewals. The deck states “All Renewals currently on hold” and “All applicable renewals will be issued under 8:43K.”

The DMHAS deck is undated. Its processing status (renewals on hold, assignment from July 1, 2026) may have changed by the time you read this; your organization should confirm current status with the Department.

How IHS helps

An organization that held separate licenses usually has separate policy manuals written to separate rules. The work is to merge them into one system built to 8:43K and, for behavioral health services, 10:36:

1. A gap assessment of your current policies and separate licenses against N.J.A.C. 8:43K and, for behavioral health services, N.J.A.C. 10:36.
2. Questionnaires on services, staffing and governance, used to build a crosswalk that merges the old requirement sets into one, with each requirement tied to a single policy and owner.
3. Drafting the unified governance documents, policy system and responsibility map. IHS drafts clinical policies for your medical, mental health and addiction leads to review and approve.
4. Drafting the CN-7 application text, which your organization reviews and files.
5. A mock review against the rule, before the Department's inspection.

Your organization supplies its current licenses and policies, service scope, staffing, clinical leads, and counsel for questions about how the rule applies to you.

The limit: 8:43K is a new rule. Where a reading is unsettled, IHS labels it as IHS's reading and the question goes to your counsel; any question for the Department goes from your organization, not from IHS.

What to have ready

Each item ties to N.J.A.C. 8:43K as adopted (notice dated April 6, 2026) or to the DMHAS overview deck.

• Every current license your organization holds, and the date any pending application was received, since the deck treats applications received before April 6, between April 6 and May 1, and after May 1, 2026 differently (DMHAS deck).
• A blank Form CN-7, the application the deck names. DOH's forms page lists CN-7 under the title “Application for New or Amended Acute Care Facility License” (last updated April 10, 2026), and the adoption notice treats CN-7 as the general license application form added at N.J.A.C. 8:43E-5.7; confirm with the Department, through your organization, that you are using the current version for an outpatient or integrated application.
• Your current policies and procedures for each service, to be revised so they “align with 8:43K” (DMHAS deck).
• For behavioral health services, your policies mapped to N.J.A.C. 10:36, Behavioral Health Program Service Standards, as well as 8:43K.
• A list of every service at every location, because 8:43K-2.8(d) charges “an additional fee for each service that a licensee provides at each facility location” (adoption notice).
• Any alternate care location or mobile van, each of which carries its own fee line in 8:43K-2.8(d).
• Names of your medical, mental health and addiction leads who will approve clinical policies.
• If you are a mental health services facility changing or adding a location, or a new applicant for mental health services facility licensure, a plan for the policy review and program site tour that a temporary license under 8:43K-2.5(f) depends on.
• A list of any rule you expect to request a waiver of, with the waiver application fee in 8:43K-2.8(g)4.

Bring what you have to the introductory call; the gap assessment starts from it.

How it compares

In IHS's reading (October 2026), the choice under 8:43K is which services the one license lists, not which separate license to hold. The DMHAS deck states that the single license law requires a license “that specifies the scope of services.” The options look like this:

• An integrated license covering several services. 8:43K “Allows for primary, behavioral health care, mental health, substance use and opioid treatment program services and/or a combination of these services” (N.J.A.C. 8:43K-1.1(a)(1)(i-iv), as quoted in the DMHAS deck).
• A single-service outpatient license, which 8:43K also covers under the same provision.
• A temporary license. Under 8:43K-2.5(f), the Department “may issue a temporary license, which is valid for up to six months or until the Department completes a full site review” to an existing licensed mental health services facility that seeks to change its location or add a location, or to an applicant for new licensure as a mental health services facility, if it submits “a complete application and the appropriate fee,” and the Department “has reviewed the policies and procedures” and “has conducted a program site tour” (adoption notice). The notice limits this to mental health services because they do not implicate the same physical requirements as other outpatient facilities, such as primary care centers.

The prior outpatient substance use disorder rule, N.J.A.C. 10:161B, was repealed in this rulemaking. IHS has not confirmed how other prior outpatient licenses interact with 8:43K going forward; that is a question for your counsel.

What it costs

The Department sets the license fees in N.J.A.C. 8:43K-2.8. The adoption notice shows the per-service fees in 8:43K-2.8(d): “The Department will charge an additional fee for each service that a licensee provides at each facility location.”

The notice's agency response states that 8:43K-2.8(g)4 “would establish $375.00 as the fee for submission of a waiver application.” The base license fees in 8:43K-2.8(a) through (c) were adopted without change from the proposal, and their amounts were not in the text IHS reviewed. Read October 2, 2026; verify current fees with the New Jersey Department of Health. IHS scopes each engagement after a free introductory call.

What this is not

• It is not legal advice. Whether 8:43K applies to your facility, and how, is a question for your counsel.
• It is not a guarantee of the Department's licensing decision or inspection result.
• IHS does not file the CN-7 or correspond with the Department. IHS drafts; your organization files.

Frequently asked questions

What is New Jersey's integrated outpatient license under N.J.A.C. 8:43K?

It is a single license from the New Jersey Department of Health under N.J.A.C. 8:43K, the Manual of Standards for Licensure of Outpatient and Integrated Care Facilities. The Department described the rules as creating a single, integrated license for outpatient health care facilities to deliver integrated primary care, mental health and addiction treatment services.

Who can get an integrated license?

The Department's announcement says the license will benefit several types of outpatient facilities, including Federally Qualified Health Centers, outpatient mental health and substance use disorder providers, and licensed primary care clinics. The DMHAS overview adds that the rule allows certain outpatient facilities to provide behavioral health, mental health, substance use disorder, opioid treatment, primary care, reproductive health and pediatric services under the appropriate licensure structure. Whether your facility type is covered turns on N.J.A.C. 8:43K-1.1; IHS did not review that applicability text for this page, so confirm it with your counsel.

When did N.J.A.C. 8:43K take effect?

The adoption notice states the rule was adopted January 15, 2026 and took effect April 6, 2026, with an expiration date of April 6, 2033.

How do I apply for a New Jersey integrated care facility license?

The DMHAS overview says to submit Form CN-7 with the applicable fees found at N.J.A.C. 8:43K-2.8. Applications received after May 1, 2026 need updated policies and procedures that align with 8:43K. IHS drafts the policies and application text; your organization files.

Do I have to rewrite my policies and procedures for 8:43K?

For applications received after May 1, 2026, the DMHAS overview requires updated policies and procedures that align with 8:43K. Applications received between April 6 and May 1, 2026 were to be returned for a new CN-7 and revised policies, and facilities approved under the earlier rules need to come into compliance with 8:43K by inspection.

How do N.J.A.C. 8:43K and N.J.A.C. 10:36 fit together for behavioral health programs?

Per the DMHAS overview, behavioral health programs, including opioid treatment programs, must have a contract or affiliation agreement with DMHAS, be licensed by DOH and comply with both N.J.A.C. 8:43K (DOH licensure standards) and N.J.A.C. 10:36, Behavioral Health Program Service Standards (DHS/DMHAS). IHS maps behavioral health policies to both. The deck does not say which programs the contract condition reaches; confirm that through your counsel.

How much does New Jersey integrated licensure cost per service and per location?

N.J.A.C. 8:43K-2.8(d), as adopted, charges an additional fee for each service at each location: $250.00 each for primary care, reproductive health care, outpatient behavioral health, an opioid treatment program and a mobile van, and $1,000 for an alternate care location. The base license fee amounts were not in the text IHS reviewed. Verify current fees with the Department.

How long does an 8:43K application take?

The undated DMHAS overview says new applicants can expect full applications to be assigned beginning July 1, 2026. IHS did not find a published review timeline beyond that, and the status may have changed.

What happens at renewal for facilities licensed under the old rules?

The DMHAS overview states that all renewals were on hold and that all applicable renewals will be issued under 8:43K. The deck is undated, so confirm the current renewal status with the Department through your organization.

What is a temporary license under 8:43K and who qualifies?

Under 8:43K-2.5(f) as adopted, the Department may issue a temporary license, valid for up to six months or until it completes a full site review, to a mental health services facility changing or adding a location or to an applicant for new licensure as a mental health services facility. The applicant must submit a complete application and the fee, and the Department must have reviewed the policies and procedures and conducted a program site tour.