The pressure is on in Congress as lawmakers wrestle with proposed steep cuts passed in a House spending bill this week and whether they'll result in a massive blow to Medicaid.

The GOP budget resolution calls for the Energy and Commerce Committee, which oversees Medicaid, to find $880 billion in savings over the next decade.

And the math shows there's nearly no way to do it without slashing the program that some 2 million New Jersey residents rely on.

Senior correspondent Brenda Flanagan takes a look at who and what those cuts would impact.

We are here today to raise the alarm and raise our voices.

Advocates at a long branch news conference joined Democrat Frank Pallone opposing a potential rage on federal funding after House Republicans passed a budget that could drop Medicaid spending by 880 billion to help pay for extending the president's four and a half trillion dollar tax cuts.

And Alzheimer's Association spokeswoman described rising cases and health care costs.

We are in need of these services for our community members.

We need the health care.

We need the support.

Visiting nurses fear cutbacks to their mission, keeping folks out of hospitals.

Medicaid makes it possible to deliver this high quality health care directly to patients in their homes, helping them manage their chronic conditions, avoid hospitalizations and maintain your independence.

It's scary because I think a lot of people just assume that these things are going to happen, but they only happen because the federal government is paying for them.

Pelosi and every other House Democrat voted against the Republican budget bill.

Jersey Medicaid covers 1.8 million low and moderate income adults and kids, nursing homes, seniors and disabled and charity hospital support.

The feds pay more than half the $24 billion bill, and New Jersey officials who ran the numbers on some possible Republican cost cutting scenarios predicted congressional cuts could blow a $5 billion hole in the state budget that alarmed Trenton lawmakers.

We're all in favor of eliminating waste, fraud and abuse.

But if you think that you can eliminate this funding and then not touch a single life in New Jersey.

Assembly Democrats yesterday passed a measure urging U.S. senators to reject the House budget bill.

You need to understand that the ripple effect to our largest employer in our state is health care.

In health care providers, that is our largest employer.

The impact of these cuts are dramatic.

The devil's in the cost cutting details.

And the president, during his first cabinet meeting this week, repeated a campaign promise not to cut Medicaid benefits.

We're not going to touch it.

Now we are going to look for fraud.

I'm sure you're okay with that.

Like people that shouldn't be on, people that are illegal aliens and others, criminals in many cases.

But the Medicaid program itself is the leanest program in the federal government.

When I say lean is the most efficient and has, you know, everybody who's analyzed, I said it has the least amount of waste, fraud and abuse.

House Republicans like New Jersey's Chris Smith, called the budget a, quote, work in progress.

But it has created a rift between hard liners who want even deeper spending cuts and others concerned about backlash from constituents.

Almost 21% of second District Republican Jeff Van Drew's constituents receive Medicaid.

He noted no actual changes to Medicare, Social Security or Medicaid can happen through a budget resolution alone.

Any real cuts would require separate legislation, which I would vehemently oppose.

Pallone, who is ranking member of the committee that oversees Medicaid, says states facing cutbacks could reduce optional benefits like dental and vision care or restrict Medicaid eligibility or cut support services.

When I see that a patient has Medicaid, I breathe a sigh of relief because I know that helping them is going to make it just that much easier.

No other insurance program does more to provide coverage.

New Jersey's Human Services commissioner warns reductions in federal funding, whether through cuts to matching rates or eligibility restrictions, could result in billions of dollars in lost support, jeopardizing access to care, forcing difficult choices in provider payments, and straining our state's health care infrastructure.

In Washington, it's now the Senate Republicans turn to wrestle with the House budget.

I'm Brenda Flanagan, NJ.

Spotlight News.