NCPA ally picked to head House Energy and Commerce Committee

Rep. Brett Guthrie (R-Ky.) is House Republicans' pick to lead the House Energy and Commerce Committee after the retirement of current chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.). The House Steering Committee chose Guthrie over Rep. Bob Latta (R-Ohio). Guthrie still must be ratified by the full House Republican Conference but is expected to easily win that vote.

As the current chair of E&C’s Health Subcommittee, Guthrie has been a major voice advocating for PBM reform this Congress. He voted for the Lower Costs, More Transparency Act (which included a major NCPA priority, the Drug Price Transparency in Medicaid Act) when it came up for a vote on the House floor last year.

He’s also been a public voice for PBM reform, including in a Washington Examiner opinion piece advocating for "shining a light on these middlemen who are making prescriptions more expensive."

The race to succeed Guthrie as Health Subcommittee chair remains undecided between Reps. Buddy Carter (R-Ga.), Morgan Griffith (R-Va.), and Gus Bilirakis (R-Fla.). Other undecided contests for positions with jurisdiction over pharmacy and health care issues include the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, with Reps. Burgess Owens (R-Utah) and Tim Walberg (R-Mich.) vying for that top spot. Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.) will remain as chair of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee and Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) will stay on as chair of the House Judiciary Committee.