Planned Parenthood Under Attack

Dear Neighbor,

I was in Perth Amboy this week with Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill and Alexis McGill Johnson, President of Planned Parenthood, to sound the alarm on Republican efforts to defund Planned Parenthood and cut access to reproductive health care nationwide.

The Big Ugly Bill, which Congressional Republicans pushed through and President Trump signed last month, strips reproductive health access from millions of Americans and “defunds” Planned Parenthood by barring Medicaid patients from using their insurance to cover essential services and preventive care. The “defund” provision is currently blocked by the courts, but the law has already forced health centers across the country to consider layoffs, reduced hours, and even closure.

Planned Parenthood health centers across America provide essential care to over two million patients annually, including STI testing, cancer screenings, and birth control services – more than half of which are delivered to patients on Medicaid. In New Jersey, Planned Parenthood served patients with more than 123,000 visits at 23 health centers in 2024. These visits included more than 140,000 cycles of birth control, 170,000 STI & HIV tests and treatments, and 13,000 cancer screenings. More than one-third of all patients in New Jersey used Medicaid to cover the costs of their care.

I fought the Big Ugly Bill every step of the way because I know what it would mean for New Jersey. We must reverse these cuts and protect access to health care in New Jersey and across the country.

Supporting New Jersey Seafood

This week, I introduced the Supporting Equity for Aquaculture and Seafood (SEAS) Act to ensure America’s seafood producers receive equal treatment and to bolster resources for American aquaculture producers. My bill will put seafood on equal footing with traditional agriculture and make smart investments to help New Jersey’s aquaculture industry grow.

American demand for seafood has increased significantly over the past 40 years, and the Department of Agriculture recommends that adults eat at least eight ounces of seafood per week as part of a healthy diet. Despite that, our nation has become increasingly reliant on foreign seafood imports to keep up with this trend.

Aquaculture has enormous potential to reduce the seafood trade deficit, strengthen our food system, and expand access to safe, sustainable American seafood. Unfortunately, federal government programs have long overlooked coastal producers. My SEAS Act fixes that by putting seafood on equal footing with traditional agriculture and making critical investments to help seafood producers thrive.

Read more about my bill here.

National Health Center Week

This week is National Health Center Week – a time to celebrate the contributions of America's federal health centers, which provide essential services like preventive care, health education, and chronic disease management nationwide. I was at the Monmouth Family Health Center in Long Branch to emphasize how important these health centers are to our community.

They are lifelines, offering essential, high-quality services to those who need it most and ensuring everyone has access to health care. Their commitment to preventive services, health education, and chronic disease management is a testament to their dedication to our collective well-being. Unfortunately, the Republicans' Big Ugly Bill slashes health care funding to give billionaires a tax cut putting our health centers and the care they provide at risk.

I will continue fighting for the funding our health centers need to ensure they can keep making a difference for patients. Supporting and growing these centers is crucial for maintaining healthy, thriving communities across our state.

Honor Our Veterans

We should be honoring our nation's heroes, not taking away their hard-earned benefits and cutting jobs from the VA, but Donald Trump has repeatedly shown that he doesn't care about veterans. He only cares about himself and his billionaire friends.

The Trump administration is cutting the VA, laying off frontline workers, including thousands of veterans who held critical jobs in other parts of the federal government, and making it harder for veterans to get their care and benefits.

Right now, Donald Trump’s VA is failing our nation’s veterans, and I’m fighting to reverse these senseless cuts and protect veterans nationwide.

Click here to visit my website or call my offices directly if you have questions or need help with a federal agency:

Middlesex County: 732-249-8892

Monmouth County: 732-571-1140

Sincerely,

Congressman Pallone