Last night, the U.S. House of Representatives approved a budget plan that could affect health coverage and nutrition assistance for millions of Americans, including many in New Jersey. The plan includes extending over $1 trillion in tax cuts for households in the top 1 percent income bracket. New Jersey representatives Jeff Van Drew, Chris Smith, and Tom Kean, Jr. supported the budget plan.
In response to this decision, New Jersey Policy Perspective (NJPP) issued a statement through Senior Policy Analyst Peter Chen: "No New Jersey family should have to go without health care or food in one of the wealthiest states in the nation. Yet, the House budget resolution passed last night sets the stage for making the state less affordable for the working-class folks who need help the most."
Chen emphasized that "Every ‘Yes’ vote was a vote to cut Medicaid, food assistance, and the basic safety net that keeps all New Jerseyans economically secure." He highlighted significant numbers: 700,000 people might lose health insurance and 800,000 could lose food assistance. "But beyond the numbers," he added, "each of those statistics is a person’s life, someone who is just trying to get by as costs increase."
He urged New Jersey’s elected officials to prioritize these individuals instead of reducing services to facilitate tax cuts for billionaires and large corporations.
