Washington, D.C. – The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) issued a sharp rebuke Friday against Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-NJ), accusing him of betraying New Jersey families by voting to slash Medicaid funding and implement restrictive new rules that could strip coverage from vulnerable residents.
At the center of the controversy is Kean’s support for the 2025 Reconciliation Act, which includes a provision requiring Medicaid recipients to undergo eligibility redetermination every six months—double the current frequency. Critics say the rule would create bureaucratic hurdles that threaten access to lifesaving services for people with lifelong conditions such as autism, cerebral palsy, and chronic mental illness.
The DCCC cited a guest column on NJ.com that calls out Kean and fellow GOP Congressmen Jeff Van Drew and Chris Smith for backing legislation that jeopardizes Medicaid coverage for hundreds of thousands of New Jerseyans. The piece argues that while Republicans claim the policy doesn’t cut Medicaid, the redetermination rule alone could lead to widespread disenrollment.
“[Kean Jr.’s] vote wasn’t just a mistake. It was a betrayal,” the DCCC stated in its release, echoing the column’s language.
New Jersey’s Department of Human Services has warned that the six-month requirement would overload caseworkers and cause eligible residents to lose benefits—not due to fraud, but because of missed paperwork deadlines or systemic backlogs.
According to the department, more than 900,000 New Jersey residents depend on Medicaid. Those most at risk under the new rule include individuals covered through the Affordable Care Act’s Medicaid expansion—many of whom rely on the program for home health care, medications, and essential therapies.
The DCCC called on Kean, Smith, and Van Drew to reverse course before the new rules take full effect, warning the policy change could drive families and frontline health workers “over the edge.”
Kean’s office has not issued a public response to the DCCC’s criticism or the NJ.com column.
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Key Points
- Rep. Tom Kean Jr. is under fire from the DCCC for voting to increase Medicaid eligibility checks to every six months
- Critics say the rule will lead to coverage losses for people with lifelong disabilities
- The DCCC and NJ.com editorial accuse Kean and fellow Republicans of betraying New Jersey families
Democrats say Kean helped build a bureaucratic cliff—and New Jersey families are about to fall off it.
