Healthcare Reform Advocates Rally at Chamber of Commerce

Special interests offer mixed reactions to Senate healthcare vote - TheHill.com

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By Jeffrey Young

K Street’s powerhouses have weighed in on the Senate’s passage of a historic healthcare reform bill — and the verdict is decidedly mixed.

Healthcare industry associations, many of which had already endorsed the legislation, offered cautious praise and conditional support; the health insurance industry expressed disappointed opposition; labor unions offered encouraging words but stopped short of endorsing the bill; and big-business groups slammed the bill.

Though few lobbying organizations representing private-sector interests completely embraced the Senate bill, the measure provoked a more positive response than a House-passed version that, among other things, would create a government-run public option health insurance program and enact a stricter requirement that businesses cover their employees.
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Healthcare reform: The unanswered questions - The Hill's Pundits Blog

The Hill's A.B. Stoddard answers viewer queries about some of the unanswered questions regarding healthcare reform and looks at how, in some districts, lobbyists are taking the place of congressmen.

Healthcare reform: The unanswered questions - The Hill's Pundits Blog

Finance committee vote opens healthcare lobbying floodgates - TheHill.com

By Alexander Bolton

Interest groups have unleashed a torrent of spending and grassroots activity to influence the Senate healthcare debate.

The completion of committee work on landmark healthcare legislation has spurred a torrent of spending and activity by interest groups seeking to influence the upcoming Senate floor debate.

Labor unions, business organizations and conservative and liberal advocacy groups have timed advertising and grassroots campaigns to coincide with the Senate Finance Committee's 14-9 vote that approved the bill.
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AMNews: Sept. 24, 2009, 2009. United, WellPoint accused of creating artificial grassroots lobbying efforts ... American Medical News

A California consumer group has asked the state's attorney general to investigate whether two health plans illegally encouraged employees to lobby on company time.

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Since 2006, the Health Sector Has Spent More Money on Lobbying Than Any Other Sector of the Economy

Robert Steinbrook, M.D. in article "Campaign Contributions, Lobbying, and the U.S. Health Sector — An Update" The New England Journal of Medicine Volume 359:1313-1315 September 25, 2008 Number 13 Since 2006, the health sector has spent more money on lobbying than any other sector of the economy. Updated statistics for 2006 show that the health sector spent $379.8 million to lobby the federal government, about $5 million more than the finance, insurance, and real estate sector and about $28 million more than was previously reported. In 2007, the health sector spent $450.7 million, nearly a 20% increase from the amount in 2006 and about $35 million more than was spent by the financial sector. Within the health sector, manufacturers of drugs, medical devices, and other health care products spend the most and have increased their spending more rapidly than other health care industries.