Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Rep. Kevin Brady Is Likely Successor To Paul Ryan As Chair Of House Ways And Means Panel
Rep. Kevin Brady (R., Texas) will likely become the next chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee after winning an intraparty contest Wednesday. ... Mr. Brady will become one of the party’s leading voices on tax, trade and health policy. He said in a statement that he wanted to implement a “pro-growth agenda” for the country. “This includes taking real steps toward fixing this broken tax code, reforming welfare, saving Social Security and Medicare for the long term and enlarging America’s economic freedom to trade,” he said. (Rubin, 11/4)
Brady’s nomination is also the latest victory for the small group of hard-line conservatives who helped force Boehner’s ouster. The race to replace Ryan as chairman came down to Brady, a southern conservative with a strong background in healthcare policy, and Rep. Pat Tiberi (R-Ohio), a business-friendly Boehner ally with a history of working with Democrats. Ways and Means oversees some of the most important issues on the Republican agenda — including tax policy, trade, Social Security and Medicare — making its chairmanship one of the most coveted positions in Congress. (Snell, 11/4)
The House Republican Conference must ratify the decision, but that is considered a formality. Brady, an 18-year veteran of Congress, is the seventh chairman from the state of Texas. (Sherman, 11/4)
