New Jersey Citizen Action (NJCA) has called on Representatives Jeff Van Drew and Tom Kean, Jr., as well as other Republican lawmakers, to collaborate with Democrats in reversing recent federal healthcare funding cuts. The statement comes after both representatives co-sponsored H.R. 5145, a bill that would extend federal subsidies for health insurance under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Without this extension, premiums for ACA plans are projected to rise by an average of 15.9 percent.
Earlier in the year, Van Drew and Kean voted in favor of legislation from the Trump administration that reduced federal funding for programs such as Medicaid, Medicare, the ACA, and SNAP. NJCA Director of Policy and Advocacy Maura Collinsgru commented on their actions:
“Representatives Van Drew and Kean have only themselves and their GOP colleagues to blame for the fact that premiums for half a million New Jerseyans on ACA marketplace plans will skyrocket. For months, they ignored countless emails, phone calls, protests, and visits from advocates, policy experts, and their own constituents urging them to reject Trump’s “big, beautiful bill.” They knowingly voted to sacrifice the needs of their constituents to give billionaires tax breaks while funding an unprecedented assault on immigrants and our health care programs and system.”
Collinsgru further stated:
“This is simply political opportunism for Van Drew and Kean, who now face the consequences for voting to deprive millions of Americans of health insurance, while driving up health care costs for millions more. Legislation to extend federal subsidies for ACA plans will only fix part of the catastrophe they helped create. If they are sincere in wanting to address the problem, we would urge them to join their colleagues from across the aisle to support the “Protecting Health Care and Lowering Costs Act of 2025” (H.R. 4849) to reverse the cuts and push for a permanent solution to the health care crises millions of Americans and New Jerseyans face.”
Premium increases could affect approximately half a million people in New Jersey who rely on ACA marketplace coverage if action is not taken.
