Andy Kim represents most of Burlington and Ocean County in Congress. His race for re-election against David Richter is spirited and very closely watched. InsiderNJ did a little Q&A with the Congressman earlier this week.

Q) Sometimes when I interview lawmakers I get accused of being biased. But I *am* biased because my healthcare is on the line with the GOP’s  obsession with repealing Obamacare. It’s a topic where you and your opponent have very different views. Is healthcare something you’re hearing a lot out on the campaign trail? And if so, What’s your plan to address the issues you’re hearing about healthcare out on the campaign trail?

A) Health care is the single biggest issue I hear about on the campaign trail. In the midst of a national pandemic, more Americans than ever are one sickness, one accident, one exposure away from financial disaster. Far too many have already lost their health care as a result of losing their job and are skipping medications because they can’t afford them. Our current system has expanded coverage to millions of Americans, but it still falls far short as costs keep rising. We need to build on the Affordable Care Act to provide affordable and accessible health care for all of us. That’s why in Congress I’ve been a relentless champion for expanding access and lowering the cost of health care. For my very first bill in Congress, I worked with a Republican to introduce legislation to lower the cost of health care. I’m a proud cosponsor of legislation that would drive down the cost of prescription drugs, and I pushed to expand Medicare benefits for dental and vision. I’ll work with anyone on either side of the aisle to deliver health care to our community because this is about more than politics, it’s about life and death in a country that cannot afford to see more suffering.

Q) Speaking of healthcare, drug and alcohol dependence is a pre-existing condition. And sadly, the opiate crisis has not gone away since Covid arrived. Fact, there’s anecdotal evidence that addiction is actually on the rise as people deal with mounting despair and economic anxiety.  This is a big deal in your district and in many districts throughout the nation. Does it feel like we have taken off the ball a little bit with the opiate crisis? And if so, How are you working to ensure that New Jersey’s insatiable addiction for opiates remains a priority?

A) The pandemic may be the newest public health crisis we face, but the opioid epidemic continues to ravage our community and destroy the lives of far too many in Burlington and Ocean Counties. Six times the number of people are dying from opioid-related overdoses today than they did twenty years ago and overdose deaths are up 20% this year. As this pandemic continues to challenge folks’ physical, mental and social health and isolating people from their support networks, this is going to get worse. I’m proud to have helped secure $500 million last year toward research and development of new opioid addiction treatment, to have authored the OPEN agenda to increase awareness and transparency around the approval of opioids and to have convened experts and families struggling with opioid addiction in our own community. We need a real national strategy and full funding to stem the tide. In Congress, I’ve voted time and again to increase funding to mental health and substance abuse programs, to encourage the funding of medication assisted treatment for those recovering from addiction, and to establish a Homeland Security Joint Task Force to combat opioid trafficking across our borders. As a national security expert I’ve worked with public servants regardless of party in order to keep our nation safe, and that’s exactly the approach I’m taking to combat this epidemic.

Q) Another issue that distinguishes the two parties is LGBTQ rights. I haven’t heard much from your opponent about LGBT issues. Saying nothing is Definitely better than saying nasty things like a lot of GOP candidates have done in the past about LGBT issues. But to the gay people in NJ3 and for the people who care about them, brushing over LGBT rights is a cop out. So what’s your plan to protect the hard-earned rights won by the LGBT community in the last generation or so?

I believe all Americans deserve equal rights and equal protections under the law, and that includes our LGBTQ brothers and sisters. I was proud to cosponsor the Equality Act that would give civil rights protections to the more than 50% of Americans who live somewhere they can still be fired for their sexual orientation or gender identity, prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex in public spaces and federally funded programs, and provide consistent anti-discrimination protections in employment, housing, and education. That legislation passed the House, but what we need to do now is get it signed into law.

Q) What’s it like sharing a ballot with a referendum to legalize marijuana?

This is a question I’ve thought a lot about and one that I haven’t taken lightly. By keeping the product safe and taking it from off the street to a regulated environment while bringing in critical revenue to our state, I think this is a measure that deserves to be passed.

Q) I’ve noticed the candidates in general look a lot less exhausted than they usually do a week before election day. How has Covid altered life on the campaign trail? Any lessons from this hardship worth sharing?

Well I’m still a dad to a three year old and a five year old, so I can’t say I’m any less exhausted than usual. When the pandemic hit, I embarked on a district wide small business tour to check in on folks and ask what I could do to help them. I met with dozens of dozens of owners and employees simply by walking into their businesses, and those conversations then shaped my work in Washington. On the digital side, we built an incredible grassroots community in 2018 and it’s been a joy to bring that community back together this time around even if so much of it has happened virtually. It’s not so much a lesson as it is a reminder, but the strength and resiliency of this community continues to inspire me.

Q) Is there an area where you and your opponent have found some common ground? I’m all about highlighting the contrast, but a note of common ground might be a good place to end on.

I believe my opponents and I share a commitment to helping support our veterans and providing them with the care that they need. Those who served our nation deserve our bipartisan support in this race and across our nation. I’ve done that work alongside our veterans during my first term in Congress and I look forward to continuing that bipartisan mission if given the chance to serve Burlington and Ocean Counties again.