New budget aims to expand Family Connects NJ program to all counties by 2027.
NJ Gov. Sherrill aims to fund home nurse visits for newborns, moms in all 21 counties
Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s first budget plan includes funding to expand New Jersey’s universal home nurse program for new moms and babies to all 21 counties by early 2027, meeting a goal set by the previous administration.
The $60.7 billion proposal includes $12.8 million for Family Connects NJ, which sends trained nurses to visit families at home within two weeks of a baby’s birth, adoption, or in cases of stillbirth or infant death. The budget now goes to state lawmakers, who have until July 1 to draft and adopt the next fiscal year’s plan.
Former Gov. Phil Murphy funded at least $50 million over several years for Family Connects NJ, which launched in 2024 in four counties and has expanded each year. If approved, the new funding will allow the Department of Children and Families to extend services to Hunterdon, Morris, Union, and Warren counties in January 2027. The Family Connects model operates in over 60 communities nationwide, but New Jersey is only the second state, after Oregon, to build a statewide program.
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