South Jersey Work Group on HR1 Medicaid changes

What communities need to know to stay covered

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Starting in July 2026, Camden Coalition is hosting a monthly, virtual work group meeting to address the upcoming changes to NJ FamilyCare. The group aims to share resources and engage in advocacy to ensure that every eligible person enrolled in NJ FamilyCare Medicaid retains their coverage, and that people who become uninsured get connected to alternative coverage and free and low-cost healthcare.

The group’s objectives are to:

  1. Share information about the harmful Medicaid changes starting October 2026.
  2. Share information about how we can all help NJ residents successfully renew their coverage or apply for the first time.
  3. Share information about how we can all help people who have become uninsured to secure alternate insurance coverage and/or access free and low-cost healthcare.
  4. Advocate for the resources necessary to do the above things AND to prevent additional detrimental policy changes.

The group is for anyone and everyone interested in achieving the goal and objectives above – especially people at organizations who work with people enrolled in NJ FamilyCare Medicaid and the GetConnected NJ Marketplace.

Join the Work Group

The Group meets on the third Thursday of the month from 1 – 2:30 pm starting on July 16, 2026. Register for the work group meetings at the link below.

Spread the word

Please forward this webpage with the work group meetings registration information to your colleagues and partners who work in the areas of healthcare, social services, immigration, faith-based, social justice, schools, legal aid, re-entry after incarceration, foster youth, disabilities, mental health, substance use treatment and more.

What changes are coming to Medicaid / NJ FamilyCare?

In the Fall of 2026, federal changes to Medicaid included in HR1, also known as “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” will go into effect. In New Jersey, this will impact eligibility for NJ Family Care and the requirements for maintaining coverage.

The majority (70%) of the 1.8 million people currently enrolled in NJ FamilyCare will NOT be affected by the new eligibility changes but, unfortunately, the remaining 30% of people (nearly 600,000) will be subject to two major changes:

  • Limited eligibility for immigrants: Beginning October 1, 2026, some immigrants will no longer qualify for NJ FamilyCare (as many as 29,000 immigrants).
  • New work reporting and redetermination requirements: Beginning January 1, 2027, certain adults aged 19 to 64 will have to work, volunteer, or go to school to keep their coverage or qualify for NJ FamilyCare.  These members must also renew their coverage every 6 months (instead of every 12 months). Some of these adults will be exempt from the work reporting requirement but they may still have to renew their coverage every 6 months.

These new rules do not apply to children, pregnant people, people who are immigrants with green cards, or people with disabilities and health conditions that prevent them from working.

For more detail on both of these changes, see the resources section below.

Congress made these policy changes to intentionally take healthcare away from adults who are immigrants and from adults with very low incomes who became eligible for Medicaid when the federal government changed the adult eligibility rules several years ago (commonly known as Medicaid expansion adults) – many of whom also have serious healthcare needs. These policies are designed to punish people who are struggling to get by and need healthcare to survive. Taking away healthcare makes it harder for us to meet our basic needs, find work, and keep a job.

The consequences affect all of us. When more people become uninsured, families face more financial strain, healthcare providers see more people for free, and hospitals and clinics — especially in rural and underserved communities — could close.

Host a training on immigrant eligibility changes

In order to make this information accessible to all communities, Camden Coalition offers two training options: your organization can request a training from Camden Coalition staff (availability limited) or organizations are welcome to host their own training using Camden Coalition’s materials, available below in the resources section.

Resources

This webpage is meant to create a common place for organizations in South Jersey to share resources to help people retain their coverage related to the harmful changes to Medicaid as a result of federal law HR1. These resources include those created by the Camden Coalition and its partners, as well as the state of New Jersey and national organizations.

We recommend checking back regularly as resources continue to be added.

Medicaid changes for immigrants taking effect October 1, 2026

Watch the recording of the first meeting of the South Jersey Work Group on HR1 Medicaid changes including What you need to know about Medicaid changes for immigrants: A 30-minute training to get into the know. Closed captions for the video are available in both English and Spanish — to change the language, click the “CC/Subtitles” button on the settings menu.

Download the slide deck for What you need to know about Medicaid changes for immigrants: A 30-minute training to get into the know

From the Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services (DMAHS)

Medicaid changes for adults with very low incomes (Medicaid expansion population) & work reporting requirements taking effect on January 1, 2027

From the Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services (DMAHS):

 

 

Free and low-cost healthcare

My Resource Pal is a free, up-to-date database of free or reduced-cost services available to residents in South Jersey, with step-by-step instructions for how to access them.

 

For more specialized services related to HR1 changes:

Health insurance & help applying for coverage

For everyone:

 

For children

 

For help with applying for health coverage

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