Phil Roe represents the First Congressional District of Tennessee and has served on the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs since he was sworn in to Congress in 2009. As a veteran and physician, Chairman Roe is committed to working on behalf of our nation’s veterans.
Chairman Roe assumed chairmanship of the committee in January 2017. Since then, he has championed major bipartisan laws to bring accountability to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), modernize the broken process for disability claims appeals and reform the way VA delivers care to veterans through the VA MISSION Act. He also worked to get the Forever GI Bill to President Trump’s desk. The Forever GI Bill was the largest expansion of GI Bill benefits since the GI Bill was created.
In June 2018, Chairman Roe and Ranking Member Walz announced the creation of a new subcommittee to monitor VA’s ongoing IT projects, especially the department’s Electronic Health Record (EHR) Modernization Program. This project is projected to span a decade and cost nearly $16 billion. If successful, the transition would bring much-needed interoperability to Department of Defense (DoD) and VA’s health record system.
A native of Tennessee, Chairman Roe was born on July 21, 1945 in Clarksville. He earned a degree in Biology with a minor in Chemistry from Austin Peay State University in 1967 and went on and to earn his Medical Degree from the University of Tennessee in 1970. Upon graduation, he served two years in the United States Army Medical Corps. In 1973 and 1974, he served as a Captain in the 2nd U.S. Infantry Division 2nd Medical Battalion and was stationed near the DMZ in Korea for 9 months and at the 121 Evacuation Hospital in Seoul for three months.
Prior to serving in Congress, Chairman Roe served as the Mayor of Johnson City from 2007 to 2009 and Vice Mayor from 2003 to 2007. He ran a successful medical practice in Johnson City for 31 years, delivering close to 5,000 babies. He has three children: David C. Roe, John Roe, and Whitney Larkin. He is also a proud grandfather and a member of Munsey United Methodist Church.
Chairman Roe also serves on the House Education and Workforce Committee. He is co-chair of the GOP Doctors Caucus.
