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Sign Petition to Stop Federal Budget Cuts to Medicaid

Posted on March 12, 2025

Congress: Protect Medicaid -- Essential Healthcare is at Risk

We, the undersigned strongly oppose Medicaid cuts that would significantly impact New Jersey’s children and families.

Medicaid is a lifeline for over 1.8 million New Jersey residents, including children, seniors, and people with disabilities. Proposed federal cuts would reduce access to healthcare, force families into medical debt, and strain hospitals and nursing homes across our state.

Who relies on Medicaid?

  • NJ FamilyCare, supported by state and federal Medicaid dollars and the Children's Health Insurance Program covers 20% of state residents including:
    • 830,000 children
    • 80,000 young people, ages 19-21
    • Children in low- to moderate-income families, living in foster care, and those with complex medical needs
  • Medicaid also assists adults with disabilities and seniors living in long-term care facilities.

The Financial Impact on New Jersey

Cuts to Medicaid would force reductions in funding for other critical programs, especially those serving children with disabilities, foster youth, and vulnerable families.

We urge you to stand up for New Jersey and fight to protect Medicaid funding. No cuts, no compromises—Medicaid matters!

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Medicaid Cuts Impact New Jersey, Sign Petition

Posted on March 10, 2025

Federal Budget Cuts will Pose a Financial Strain on New Jersey and Threatens Essential Healthcare Services for Children and Families

The NJ Department of Human Services has assessed how Congressional budget proposals could impact Medicaid provider pay, eligibility, and benefits—affecting thousands of children and families statewide.

Federal funds cover over half ($14B) of NJFamilyCare’s $24B budget. Cuts could jeopardize vital services, forcing families to choose between healthcare and basic needs.

The state's healthcare coverage program, NJFamilyCare, covers 1.8 million New Jerseyans- including 830,000 children and 80,000 young adults.

Who are these children?

  • Children from poor to moderate income working families
  • Children living in foster care
  • Young people recently aged out of foster care and just entering the workforce
  • Children adopted from foster care with special needs
  • Children living in kinship care families
  • Children receiving services through NJ's Children System of Care
  • Children with developmental disabilities
  • Children with complex medical and health needs
  • Children receiving Medicaid school-based health services
  • Children with IEPs and needing health-related services in school

Medicaid also assists adults with disabilities and seniors living in long-term care facilities.

What services are at stake?

The coverage includes life-saving care and essential services that prevent costly and invasive health problems in the future. Some of these services include:

  • Hospital Care
  • Physician (Primary Care and Specialty)
  • Dental Care
  • Prescription Drugs
  • Maternal Health (This includes more than 30% of New Jersey births)
  • Long-term nursing care, in nursing facilities and the community
  • Behavioral health, including services for those with serious mental illness and treatment of substance use disorders
  • Community-based services for individuals with developmental disabilities

ACT NOW: Tell Congress you oppose Medicaid cuts that will affect our most vulnerable citizens. 

In New Jersey, 830,000 children depend on NJFamilyCare for their healthcare needs. View the chart below to see how many live in your congressional district. Map B shows that children stand to lose most because they make up the larger share of the Medicaid population.

Click here to find your Congressional District

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ACNJ’s Testimony in Support of Bill A2291 (expanding child care assistance to all full-time child care workers)

Posted on March 10, 2025

Winifred Head Shot2
cindy shields

TO:
Asw. Shama A. Haider, Chair
Asm. William W. Spearman, Vice Chair
Members of the Assembly Committee on Children, Families and Food Security

FROM: Winifred Smith-Jenkins, Ed.D, Director of Early Learning for Policy and Advocacy
Cindy Shields, Senior Policy Analyst for Early Childhood, Advocates for Children of New Jersey

DATE: March 10, 2025

RE: A2291 (categorical eligibility, expanding child care assistance to all full-time child care workers)

Good morning, Chairwoman Haider and members of the committee. Thank you for the opportunity to speak today in strong support of Assembly Bill 2291.

Child care is not just a service—it is the backbone of our economy. Right now, New Jersey’s child care system is in crisis. Providers are struggling to keep their doors open, child care workers are leaving the field due to poverty wages, and families are trapped on endless waitlists or forced to leave the workforce because they can’t find affordable early care and education. We ask these dedicated professionals to care for and educate our youngest learners, yet we pay them wages so low that many struggle to afford care for their own children. Of the nearly 26,000 child care workers in our state, only 859 currently qualify for child care assistance (a mere 3%). That means thousands of the very people we entrust with our children are forced to make impossible choices—often leaving the field altogether, worsening the workforce shortage.

When child care workers cannot afford child care, the entire economy suffers. Parents rely on child care to work, businesses depend on a stable workforce, and young children thrive when they have consistent, high-quality teachers. But right now, we are failing both our families and our workforce. High turnover in child care centers disrupts children’s learning and development, puts stress on providers, and leaves businesses struggling when employees can’t find stable care. This bill would support child care professionals and incentivize individuals to stay in the field, ensuring recruitment and retention of qualified educators.

A2291 is a common-sense solution that other states—including Kentucky, Washington, Massachusetts, and others—have already embraced. By expanding child care assistance to all full-time child care workers, begin to stabilize this critical workforce, reduce turnover, and strengthen New Jersey’s economy.

Child care is not just a service—it is the foundation of our economy. Fully funding DHS must be our highest priority because without it, our workforce crumbles. Any cuts would be catastrophic, forcing child care providers to shut their doors, driving workers out of the field, and leaving families without the care they need to stay employed. The ripple effects would be felt across every industry in New Jersey. If we are truly committed to supporting working families and building a stronger economy, we must not only protect DHS funding but expand it. Child care workers are essential to keeping our economy running—it’s time we invest in them like our future depends on it, because it does.

I urge you to pass this bill and recognize child care workers for what they are: the backbone of our workforce. Thank you for your time and consideration. Should you have any questions or need additional information, please feel free to reach me at cshields@acnj.org.