Congressman Jim McDermott
Rep. Jim McDermott (D-WA) is serving in his eleventh term in the U.S. House of Representatives representing the 7th Congressional District of Washington State, which includes Seattle and parts of several neighboring communities. As a senior member of the Ways and Means Committee, Representative McDermott is chairman of its Income Security and Family Support Subcommittee and also serves on its Subcommittee on Trade. Jim McDermott was born in Chicago, Illinois on December 28, 1936. He was the first member of his family to attend college, and went on to finish medical school. After completing his medical residency and military service in the Navy, he made his first run for public office in 1970 and was elected to the State Legislature from the 43rd Legislative District of Washington State. In 1974, Jim successfully ran for the State Senate, and subsequently was re-elected three times.
In 1987, after 15 years of legislative service, McDermott decided to leave politics and to continue in public service as a Foreign Service medical officer based in Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo), providing psychiatric services to Foreign Service, Agency for International Development, and Peace Corps personnel in sub-Saharan Africa. When the 7th District Congressional seat became open, he returned from Africa to seek election to the U.S. House of Representatives. He was elected in 1988 to the 101st Congress and is currently serving in his 11th term.
As a physician, Representative McDermott is especially interested in health care issues. While serving in the Washington State Legislature, he crafted the Washington Basic Health Plan, the first state program in the country to provide low-cost health insurance to the unemployed and working poor. In the U.S. Congress, Representative McDermott is consistently active on health care reform issues. He founded and chairs the Congressional Task Force on International HIV/AIDS, and championed the AIDS Housing Opportunities Act. The co-author of a major single payer health care proposal, Representative McDermott is leading the fight in the U.S. House of Representatives to guarantee all Americans comprehensive and affordable health care coverage. Representative McDermott is married to Therese Hansen, an attorney in Seattle. He has two adult children and three grandchildren. He attends St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral in Seattle.
