How Did Physician Lawmakers Fare in US Elections?

After Tuesday’s US election, 15 physicians will serve in Congress, with the possibility of three more whose races remain too close to call.

Three newly elected Democrats — Maxine Dexter, MD, an Oregon pulmonologist; Kelly Morrison, MD, a Minnesota obstetrician-gynecologist, and Herb Conaway, MD, a New Jersey primary care physician — will join the US House of Representatives, according to predictions from Decision Desk HQ.

Another Democratic physician who’s trying to join the House for the first time is in a too-close-to-call race in Arizona.

In January, the winners of congressional races will be sworn in as part of the 119th United States Congress. Republicans will take control of the Senate. As of Wednesday evening 10 pm, US Eastern standard time, it was unclear which political party will control the House. 

Federal lawmakers will likely face numerous health policy challenges, including physician reimbursement, reproductive and gender-affirming health care, Medicare/Medicaid spending, and price caps on prescription drugs like insulin. 

Donald Trump’s victory in the presidential race also calls into question the future of the Affordable Care Act and funding for medical research, although Trump’s precise health care plans remain uncertain. 

On the incumbent front, three Democratic and nine Republican physicians were re-elected to the House, while two Republican physicians chose to retire this year. Two other incumbent physicians — an Iowa Republican and a Colorado Democrat — are in races deemed too close to call late Wednesday. 

The current House has 14 physician members with medical degrees — four Democrats and 10 Republicans. 

In the US Senate, the number of physicians — four, all Republicans — will stay the same. Wyoming Senator John Barrasso, MD, an orthopedic surgeon, won re-election. The other three, representing Kansas, Kentucky, and Louisiana, were not up for re-election this year.

The number of physicians in Congress has ranged from a low of two in 1990 to 21 in 2013.

Here’s a look at the physicians who ran for Congress this year and either won or are in close races:

Winners (Newcomers)

• Maxine Dexter (Democrat), pulmonology, Oregon
• Kelly Morrison (Dem.), obstetrics-gynecology, Minnesota
• Herb Conaway (Dem.), primary care, New Jersey

Winners (Incumbents)

• John Barrasso (Republican), orthopedic surgery, Wyoming (Senate)
• Ami Bera (Dem.), internal medicine, California
• Scott DesJarlais (Rep.), primary care, Tennessee
• Neal Dunn (Rep.), urology, Florida
• Mark Green (Rep.), emergency medicine, Tennessee
• Andy Harris (Rep.), anesthesiology, Maryland
• Ronny Jackson (Rep.), emergency medicine, Texas
• John Joyce (Rep.), dermatology, Pennsylvania
• Rich McCormick (Rep.), emergency medicine, Georgia
• Greg Murphy (Rep.), urology, North Carolina
• Raul Ruiz (Dem.), emergency medicine, California
• Kim Schrier (Dem.), pediatrics, Washington

Too Close to Call (Newcomer)

• Amish Shah (Dem.), emergency medicine/sports medicine, Arizona

Too Close to Call (Incumbents)

• Yadira Caraveo (Dem.), pediatrician, Colorado
• Mariannette Miller-Meeks (Rep.), ophthalmologist, Iowa

Randy Dotinga is an independent writer and board member of the Association of Health Care Journalists.