“I’m pleased to announce that Allison Giles will be the staff director for the Ways and Means Committee. Allison has a deep understanding of how the Committee works, brings broad experience to the job, and will serve the Committee Members and the Congress very well,” said Chairman Thomas.

A biography of Ms. Giles follows:

ALLISON H. GILES, RN, JD

Ms. Giles served as Professional Staff on the Ways and Means Health Subcommittee for nearly three years, ending her years of service in 1999. During this time, Ms. Giles focused primarily on Medicare policy. In the 105th Congress, Ms. Giles staffed the “Hastert Health Care Quality Task Force” on the issue of the confidentiality of medical information, a proposal included in the Patient Protection Act of 1998. Ms. Giles developed for Members various Medicare policies included in the Balanced Budget Act of 1997.

Prior to joining the Subcommittee, Ms. Giles worked for Congressman Bill Thomas for two and a half years (1994-1996) as a legislative aide where she developed general health care policy issues. As legislative assistant, Ms. Giles led briefing sessions for House Republican staff on health care issues. From 1992 to 1994, Ms. Giles was the Assistant Chief Counsel for Health Policy in the Office of Advocacy at the U.S. Small Business Administration. In this position, Ms. Giles analyzed the impact of legislation and regulations on small businesses.

Since leaving Capitol Hill, Ms. Giles worked as a consultant on various health care issues at The Legislative Strategies Group in Washington, D.C.