August 12, 2022

Greetings,

We hope you had a great week. This week, Congressman Kim delivered major wins for New Jersey, including the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act and President Biden signing both the CHIPS and Science Act and the Honoring Our PACT Act into law. These laws will lower healthcare costs, support our veterans, finally allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices, strengthen our supply chains, tackle the national debt, combat climate change, and more! Take a deeper look into these transformational and historic accomplishments below.

As always, we hope you find the following updates and resources helpful.

Congressman Kim Votes to Lower Costs, Finally Allow Medicare to Negotiate Drug Prices, Fight Climate Change, and Cut $300 Billion off the National Debt

On Friday, Congressman Kim voted for the Inflation Reduction Act, a transformational bill that will lower health and energy costs for Americans, finally allow Medicare to negotiate down the cost of prescription drugs, invest in American energy production, and do more to combat climate change than any bill in history, all while paying down $300 billion of the national debt.

The legislation was passed in the U.S. Senate on August 7th, 2022 and now heads to the President’s desk to be signed into law.

Congressman Kim on the Inflation Reduction Act:

“When I came to Congress, I made a promise to fight for working families, to lower health costs and prescription drug costs, and to protect those with pre-existing conditions. Today, we deliver on that promise,” said Congressman Kim. “The Inflation Reduction Act is transformational - finally allowing Medicare to negotiate for lower prescription drug costs after decades of opposition from Big Pharma. I’m especially proud that my provision to cap out-of-pocket prescription drug costs for seniors is in this bill too. I’ve heard from a constituent at one of my town halls who pays more than $500 a month for their heart medicine. Now, no senior in America will need to pay more than $166 a month ($2000 a year). That's real help. We’re also capping the cost of insulin for seniors on Medicare at $35 per month, increasing clean energy production to bring down prices, and investing in future generations by building a clean energy infrastructure right here in America. We’re fighting climate change and becoming energy independent while paying off $300 billion of our national debt. I’m proud to vote for this bill and send it to the President’s desk for his signature.”

Learn more on how the Inflation Reduction Act will lower the national debt, lower health and energy costs for Americans, and make American energy independent and safeguard our environment here.

President Biden Signs Honoring Our PACT Act into Law

On Wednesday, Congressman Kim celebrated President Biden signing the Honoring Our Pact Act into law, securing 3.5 million veterans the healthcare coverage they have earned.

On July 13th, Congressman Kim helped pass the SFC Heath Robinson Honoring Our PACT Act to make good on our country’s promise to our veterans by giving them the care and benefits they have earned. Most significantly, the legislation will expand healthcare access for veterans exposed to toxic substances during service and provide a presumption of service connection for hypertension and monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) for Vietnam veterans.

You can learn more about its VA healthcare and benefits at VA.gov/PACT or by calling 1-800-MyVA411.

Transformative CHIPS and Science Act Signed into Law

This Tuesday, President Biden signed the CHIPS and Science Act into law, lowering costs for Americans and boosting American manufacturing.

On July 28th, Congressman Kim voted to pass this bipartisan bill to invest in semiconductor component manufacturing here in America, research, STEM education, and boost American research and projects in next-generation tech. The legislation also establishes a national supply chain database that will provide an overview of American manufacturing across all 50 states and territories. This would reinforce our national supply chain to eliminate the bottlenecks we encountered during the COVID-19 pandemic for products like PPE and testing supplies.

Congressman Kim and Senator Cory Booker Hold Roundtables in the District

This week, Congressman Kim and Senator Cory Booker spoke with community members in Manahawkin and Willingboro. On Tuesday, the pair visited the Stafford Township Police Department with neighboring police departments and the Bright Harbor Healthcare to discuss the On P.O.I.N.T program. Congressman Kim and Senator Booker secured $32,000 in funding for the On P.O.I.N.T. program that brings local police and mental health professionals together to keep communities safe. The program provides early intervention and diverts individuals experiencing mental health crises from the criminal justice system and into the appropriate health care system.

And on Wednesday, Congressman Kim convened a roundtable to discuss inequities faced by Black owned businesses and spoke with local entrepreneurs about how to best expand their access to capital and SBA assistance. In August, Congressman Kim joins in celebrating Black Business Month and honoring our incredible Black-owned businesses across New Jersey.

CDC Updates COVID-19 Quarantine and Social Distancing Guidance

On Thursday, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated its COVID-19 guidance to ease recommendations on quarantining after being exposed to COVID-19. The new guidance includes unvaccinated people in the following recommendations, previously applying to only vaccinated people: 

• Unvaccinated people no longer have to quarantine after exposure, instead they should mask up for 10 days and get tested five days after they were exposed.
• Americans who are exposed to the virus, regardless of vaccination status, no longer need to stay at home if they've had an exposure, per the CDC's latest guidelines. 
• People should test on day six of isolation if they're fever-free and then take a second rapid test 48 hours later. If both tests are negative, people can leave their homes and not use a mask around others.

Congressman Kim’s Office Hosting Webinar on Hurricane Preparedness for Blind and Low-Vision Community Members

On August 19th from 12 to 1 PM, the Office of Congressman Kim is hosting a webinar with NJ Office of Emergency Management and other state-wide organizations. The panel will provide preparedness tips from the NJ Office of Emergency Management, the latest in technology for weather alerts and assistance in a disaster, information to share with family/friends/neighbors in case of disaster, planning ahead with your county, statewide resources and organizations for individuals who are blind, deaf/blind or low vision, and give an opportunity for Q and A.

For Zoom access or for other additional information, you can reach out to [email protected].

Interested in Receiving Other Updates?

If you want to receive specific updates on issues that matter most to you, consider signing up for one of our additional newsletters! To subscribe to our COVID-19 Updates, Small Business Newsletter, Guide to Grants, Veterans Newsletter, and/or our Seniors Newsletter, click here.

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to serve you every day!

Have a wonderful weekend,

The Office of Congressman Andy Kim

This email inbox is not monitored. If you would like to contact our office, click here.