Key Republican: GOP ‘hard pressed’ to wrap megabill by Memorial Day

Republicans will be “hard pressed” to finish their megabill by Memorial Day, a key Republican said Tuesday at a hospital industry conference.

This acknowledgment from Rep. Buddy Carter of Georgia, the top Republican on the House Energy and Commerce health subcommittee, is a significant concession that Republicans face a steep hill to climb to meet Speaker Mike Johnson’s deadline for getting the bill through the House by the end of May.

Republicans are still sorting through major divisions on how deeply to make cuts to Medicaid and issues related to state and local tax deductions. At stake is extending President Donald Trump’s tax cuts and enacting his broader agenda on tax, energy and border policy.

Johnson also suggested Monday the timeline could change as lawmakers work to resolve major policy differences, but that if it slips past Memorial Day it would be wrapped “shortly thereafter.”

Still, Carter said Tuesday at the American Hospital Association’s conference in Washington, "I’m very confident, first of all, we can get this done … [and] that we’re going to get it done in a timely fashion. Certainly we’re going to get it done before July 4.”

Carter, a former pharmacist, also revealed that the text of bipartisan legislation targeting the business practices of pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs, to lower drug prices is currently on tap for inclusion in the Energy and Commerce Committee's portion of the Trump agenda bill. Carter had previously said that commercial market overhauls may not qualify for the budget reconciliation process given the Senate’s stringent rules, but changes impacting government programs like Medicaid could qualify. On Tuesday, he said Republicans are planning to include some of those provisions in the package. 

“What we’re going to do is eliminate spread pricing in Medicaid,” Carter said, referring to the policy that would prohibit PBMs from charging Medicaid more for a prescription drug than is paid to a pharmacy that dispenses the medication.

But Republicans have struggled to reach agreement over how to obtain enough savings to reach the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s target of $880 billion in spending cuts for the megabill. Democrats and some Republicans have warned that major cuts to Medicaid could threaten health care access for millions of Americans.

“What we're trying to do is to see where we can cut waste, fraud and abuse of Medicaid, where we can stabilize that program and make it sustainable for the most vulnerable in our population, those who it was intended for in the first place,” Carter said.

Carter also hinted, as he has previously, that he might be interested in running against Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.) in the 2026 Georgia Senate race.

“Right now, I'm concentrating on making sure we get through this reconciliation process as chair of the health subcommittee and representing people with the first congressional district, but I want to do what's best for our state,” Carter said. “And I believe that God has a plan, and he'll make sure that that plan is followed.”

Ben Leonard contributed to this report.