Statement

Cruel and Costly House Budget Bill Cuts Health Care for Thousands in New Jersey

House budget bill prioritizes massive trillion-dollar tax break for the wealthiest one percent over health care and food assistance.

By

Published on May 22, 2025 in Economic Justice, Tax and Budget

On Thursday, May 22, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a sweeping budget bill that includes dramatic cuts to Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), eliminates the Child Tax Credit for millions of children, and slashes investments in renewable energy. The bill would have far-reaching and harmful consequences, especially for New Jersey, by shifting more than $3.6 billion in costs from the federal government to the state.

In response, New Jersey Policy Perspective (NJPP) issues the following statement.

Nicole Rodriguez, President, NJPP:

“The numbers in the budget bill approved by the House are hard to fathom: 14 million people will lose health insurance. Three million will be cut off from the food assistance they need to survive.

“But behind each of these numbers is a human life — a child going to bed hungry, a parent skipping cancer treatment, a grandparent unable to afford both medication and food. All so Congress can gift a trillion-dollar tax break to the wealthiest 1 percent. In New Jersey alone, hundreds of thousands of everyday people stand to lose coverage and support.

“Let me be clear, this is not fiscal responsibility — this is fiscal sabotage. Our state will be forced to absorb more than $3.6 billion in new costs just to preserve an already threadbare, vital safety net. This bill shifts the greatest burdens onto those with the least, all while padding the bank accounts of the ultra-wealthy.

“Budgets are moral documents — they show who matters and who is left behind. This one sends a chilling message: the House majority values billionaires over hungry children, health care for seniors, and support for people with disabilities.

“This is a cruel and reckless betrayal of the values we share. These are not New Jersey’s values, and they must not be the values of our country.

“Congress must reject this bill. Too many lives are on the line — and so is our future.”

Read more about the effects of federal funding cuts on New Jersey. 

Read more about the state agencies that receive federal funding. 

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Author

  • Nicole Rodriguez, Research Director, is an experienced public policy advocate who researches and advocates for state policy solutions that centers the needs of communities. She is skilled in policy analysis, research, writing, communication, and nonprofit organization and management. Her research interests include labor and economic policy at the intersection of work and family.

    Before joining New Jersey Policy Perspective, Nicole was a Senior Researcher at Community Labor United (CLU), an organization that brings together community and labor partners to speak in one voice on issues that impact working-class families throughout Greater Boston. Specifically, Nicole drove strategic campaigns forward with rigorous research and leadership that stabilize and strengthen low-income families and communities of color.Prior to that, Nicole worked as a Senior Policy Analyst at the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center, an independent research organization that produces non-partisan policy research, analysis, and data-driven recommendations focused on improving the lives of low- and middle-income children and adults, strengthening our state’s economy, and enhancing the quality of life in Massachusetts. Nicole has authored numerous reports focusing on family economic security and the state budget.

    She has also worked for foundations, non-profits, and state and local governments in Massachusetts. She holds a Master’s in Public Policy from the Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University and a Bachelors of Arts in Political Science from Villanova University.

    Email: rodriguez (at) njpp.org | Phone: 609-393-1145 ext. 18
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