New chairmen named for health, tax subcommittees

Three of the House Ways and Means Committee’s six subcommittees will have new chairmen for 2018, Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-Texas) announced Wednesday.

The health, tax and oversight subcommittees will all have new leadership this year, in light of Rep. Pat Tiberi’s (R-Ohio) departure from Congress to lead the Ohio Business Roundtable. Tiberi had been chairman of the health panel.

Rep. Peter Roskam (R-Ill.), will be the new health subcommittee chairman. He had previously led the tax-policy subcommittee as Republicans worked last year to pass their tax-cut bill.

Roskam is also being targeted by Democrats in the midterm elections, with the nonpartisan Cook Political Report calling his seat a toss-up.

“I’m honored to be named Chairman of the Subcommittee on Health at this critical time for thoughtful health policy,” Roskam said. “Our healthcare system has been broken for many years, and it’s important that we get this right.”

Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.) was named the new chairman of the tax-policy subcommittee. He previously led the oversight subcommittee and has been pushing to reform the IRS in the wake of the tax law’s enactment.

Rep. Lynn Jenkins (R-Kan.), who is retiring from Congress at the end of her term, was named the new leader of the oversight subcommittee.

The remaining three Ways and Means subcommittees will keep the same chairmen they had last year.

Rep. Dave Reichert (R-Wash.) will continue to lead the trade panel, Rep. Sam Johnson (R-Texas) will continue to lead the Social Security panel and Rep. Adrian Smith (R-Neb.) will continue to lead the human resources panel. Reichert and Johnson are both retiring from Congress at the end of the year.