Medtronic CEO Omar Ishrak said the new law will allow the medical device giant to access nearly all of its cash — up from 55 percent of it

President Donald Trump listens to the cheering crowd at a campaign rally in Phoenix, Arizona, U.S., August 22, 2017. Joshua Roberts | Reuters

At the biggest healthcare conference of the year, executives are happy about the new federal tax law — but not for the reason you may expect. Many biotech and pharmaceutical firm won't gain much from the new corporate tax rate, but they'll benefit from being able to access overseas cash. Analysts see a spike in dealmaking this year thanks to an influx of cash. But companies at the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference on Monday in San Francisco insisted the money won't fundamentally change their plans for putting capital to work.

I do think now we have a more globally competitive system, a system that will benefit the U.S. economy and will benefit job creation in the U.S. Dominic Caruso chief financial officer, Johnson & Johnson

Johnson & Johnson Chief Financial Officer Dominic Caruso said the new law reduces some hurdles to allocating capital, but it won't shift the company's overall strategy. J&J's first priority remains its dividend, he said, then mergers and share buybacks. "I do think now we have a more globally competitive system, a system that will benefit the U.S. economy and will benefit job creation in the U.S.," Caruso said in a presentation.

Big money overseas