Rep. Morgan Griffith, R-Va. Credit: Official photo
One of the U.S. House panels that creates, shapes and kills health benefits legislation has a new leader.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee has announced that Rep. Morgan Griffith, R-Va., is replacing Rep. Earl "Buddy" Carter, R-Georgia, as the chairman of its Health Subcommittee.
Carter is running for a Senate seat in Georgia.
Carter said in a statement last week that he is stepping down from the Health Subcommittee to give Georgia and his district his undivided attention. He is still a member of the subcommittee.
The Health Subcommittee: The Health Subcommittee shares jurisdiction over many bills related to employer-sponsored health benefits along with panels such as the House Ways and Means Committee and the Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions Subcommittee at the House Education and the Workforce Committee.
The subcommittee has organized major hearings in recent years on topics such as generic drug shortages, telehealth services coverage, pharmacy benefit manager regulation and the impact of the big cyberattack on UnitedHealth's Change health data communications business.
The lawmakers: Carter, a pharmacist, has been a strong supporter of bills that would restrict pharmacy benefit managers and other types of benefit managers, such as dental and vision plan provider network managers.
Related: House members roll out bipartisan PBM drug price transparency bill
Griffith, Carter's successor, is a lawyer.
Like Carter, Griffith has backed efforts to rein in PBMs and dental benefits managers.
Griffith has also introduced bills that would increase patients' access to compounding pharmacies, or pharmacies that can create drugs outside of the usual commercial pharmaceutical supply chain.
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