The House committee that writes Medicare’s payment rules and the tax exemption every nonprofit hospital lives on. In January it changes hands, and 14 of its 45 members are gone, including both leaders of its Health Subcommittee.
Every tax bill starts in the House, and every one starts here. Ways and Means writes the revenue code, Social Security and the House side of Medicare. On health care, it decides what Medicare pays and who pays no tax at all.
Has named the expired ACA premium tax credits, Medicare cuts he says endanger Massachusetts hospitals, Social Security hearings and tariffs as his first priorities.
Moves from the gavel to the minority with a thinner bench. 8 of his 25 Republican colleagues on the committee will not return.
Both leaders of the Health Subcommittee retired. So did the Budget Committee chairman. Seven members lost an election, and two left for a Senate seat and a governor’s mansion.
| Member | Why | What goes with them |
|---|---|---|
| Vern Buchanan R-Florida | Retired | Chairman of the Health Subcommittee. |
| Jodey Arrington R-Texas | Retired | Chairman of the House Budget Committee. Sat on the Trade and Tax Subcommittees. |
| David Schweikert R-Arizona | Ran for governor; lost the primary | Chairman of the Oversight Subcommittee. |
| Brian Fitzpatrick R-Pennsylvania | Defeated in the general election | Health Subcommittee member. Seat won by Democrat Bob Harvie. |
| Randy Feenstra R-Iowa | Ran for governor; lost the primary | Sat on the Social Security, Work and Welfare and Tax Subcommittees. |
| Mike Carey R-Ohio | Defeated in the general election | Seat won by Democrat Don Leonard. |
| Max Miller R-Ohio | Defeated in the general election | Seat won by Democrat Brian Poindexter. |
| Kevin Hern R-Oklahoma | Elected to the Senate | Health Subcommittee member. Takes the Oklahoma seat Markwayne Mullin vacated. |
| Lloyd Doggett D-Texas | Retired | Ranking member of the Health Subcommittee. Did not run after Texas redrew his district; the new seat went to Democrat Greg Casar. |
| Danny Davis D-Illinois | Retired | Health Subcommittee member. Seat won by Democrat La Shawn Ford. |
| Dwight Evans D-Pennsylvania | Retired | Health Subcommittee member. Seat won by Democrat Chris Rabb. |
| John Larson D-Connecticut | Lost his primary | Lost to former Hartford mayor Luke Bronin, 53.5% to 34.7% when AP called the race. |
| Jimmy Gomez D-California | Defeated in the general election | Lost an all-Democratic general election to Angela Gonzales-Torres. |
| Stacey Plaskett D-Virgin Islands | Elected governor | The first woman elected governor of the U.S. Virgin Islands. |
Each member’s record on the cost drivers this committee controls, and a Machine Score from 0 to 100. The score measures how independent they are from the hospital lobby. Higher is better; 100 means they have never sided with it. Hospital PAC money sits beside the score, not inside it.
| Member | Site-neutral pay | Physician-owned hospitals | Price transparency | Nonprofit tax exemption | Hospital PAC money | Machine Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Richard Neal D-Mass. Expected chairman | $65.0K | |||||
| Jason Smith R-Mo. Expected ranking member | $60.0K | |||||
| Mike Thompson D-Calif. Tax Subcommittee ranking member · race not called as of November 8 | $27.5K | |||||
| Linda Sánchez D-Calif. Trade Subcommittee ranking member | $40.0K | |||||
| Terri Sewell D-Ala. Oversight Subcommittee ranking member | $55.0K | |||||
| Suzan DelBene D-Wash. Member | $40.0K | |||||
| Judy Chu D-Calif. Health Subcommittee member | $12.5K | |||||
| Gwen Moore D-Wis. Member | $11.5K | |||||
| Brendan Boyle D-Pa. Health Subcommittee member | $25.5K | |||||
| Don Beyer D-Va. Member | $15.5K | |||||
| Brad Schneider D-Ill. Member | $23.0K | |||||
| Jimmy Panetta D-Calif. Member | $19.5K | |||||
| Steven Horsford D-Nev. Health Subcommittee member | $43.0K | |||||
| Tom Suozzi D-N.Y. Member | $28.5K | |||||
| Adrian Smith R-Neb. Trade Subcommittee chairman | $25.5K | |||||
| Mike Kelly R-Pa. Tax Subcommittee chairman | $17.5K | |||||
| Darin LaHood R-Ill. Work and Welfare Subcommittee chairman | $25.5K | |||||
| Ron Estes R-Kan. Social Security Subcommittee chairman | $10.0K | |||||
| Lloyd Smucker R-Pa. Member | $24.0K | |||||
| Carol Miller R-W.Va. Health Subcommittee member | $42.0K | |||||
| Greg Murphy R-N.C. Health Subcommittee member · race not called as of November 8 | $28.0K | |||||
| David Kustoff R-Tenn. Health Subcommittee member | $54.0K | |||||
| Greg Steube R-Fla. Health Subcommittee member | $17.0K | |||||
| Claudia Tenney R-N.Y. Health Subcommittee member | $12.0K | |||||
| Michelle Fischbach R-Minn. Member | $20.0K | |||||
| Blake Moore R-Utah Health Subcommittee member | $28.5K | |||||
| Beth Van Duyne R-Texas Member | $25.5K | |||||
| Nicole Malliotakis R-N.Y. Member | $21.5K | |||||
| Rudy Yakym R-Ind. Member | $12.0K | |||||
| Aaron Bean R-Fla. Member | $25.5K | |||||
| Nathaniel Moran R-Texas Member | $17.5K |
Records and Machine Scores load when the scored-action list is published. Hospital PAC money: FEC bulk files, 2024 and 2026 cycles, PAC contributions from hospital systems and hospital associations, in FEC files retrieved October 8, 2026. 2 races were not called as of November 8, 2026; those members are listed until the result is known.
Physicians take a 2.3% Medicare pay cut on January 1 because the one-year 2.5% raise in the 2025 law expires. A budget-neutrality fix cleared this committee 44 to 0 in May. An inflation update has 69 cosponsors and no markup.
A bill making big hospitals disclose their 340B program revenue cleared the committee 25 to 15 in July and never reached the floor. It dies with this Congress. The incoming chairman names hospitals as something to protect, not to examine.
Medicare still pays a hospital more than an independent office for the same visit. CMS is closing the gap one service at a time by rule: drug administration in 2026, imaging in 2027. A bill in this committee to narrow the loophole has no cosponsors and no hearing.
A member of this committee wrote the bill to repeal the 2010 ban on new physician-owned hospitals. It has sat in committee since June 2025 without a hearing.
From January 1, Medicare pays hospitals 28% below average sales price for drugs bought through the 340B program. CMS made the $4.35 billion cut by rule. Hospitals want Congress to undo it. The committee has not scheduled a vote.
The enhanced credits expired December 31, 2025. The House passed a three-year extension after a discharge petition; it is not law. The incoming chairman lists restoring them first among his priorities.
Every health system in your member’s district and state, with its subsidies, reserves, executive pay and offshore holdings, sourced to the filing. Ready for a hearing.