Consumer Watchdog – Dems Who Voted "No" On Health Reform Received $568K From Health Insurers & $377K From Drug Companies In 2009

Opponents of Reform Received 15% More In Contributions From Health Industry Than Supporters

Washington D.C. -- Democrats who voted against health care reform legislation passed on Saturday by the U.S. House of Representatives received $568,162 in campaign contributions from insurance companies and $377,943 from drug companies in just the first ten months of 2009, according to an analysis released today by Consumer Watchdog.  (See chart below).

In a related analysis, OpenSecrets.org found that opponents of the House health reform bill received 15 percent more in contributions from the broader health industry than those who supported the measure.  Read the analysis here.

"Insurers and other health care special interests have made a massive down payment to turn health care reform into a government-funded customer delivery system for the fragmented, wasteful private market.  The insurance-medical complex is spending big to eliminate the public option to the private market and reduce reform to a requirement that all Americans buy coverage with no guarantees that they will be protected when they get sick," said Jerry Flanagan of Consumer Watchdog.  "The numbers show that insurance and medical industries are hedging their bets and stacking up chips for future use by shoving money at both sides of the current debate. They're fully aware that the detailed construction of any health reform will occur after the final big votes in Congress. Money spent today will buy access as regulations and follow-up laws are passed under less scrutiny."

In a study released in July, Consumer Watchdog found that health insurers contributed $2.7 million to the top ten members in the House and Senate, while pharmaceutical companies contributed $3.4 million to the top ten members of each chamber. The two industries donated a combined $26.2 million in campaign contributions to the current members of the 111th Congress.  Read more here.

39 House Democrats and all but one of the 177 House Republicans vote against the health reform bill, HR 3962, which passed 220-215.  See the chart below for a list of contributions from insurance companies and pharmaceutical manufacturers to the Democrats opposing the measure.

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Consumer Watchdog is a nonpartisan consumer advocacy organization with offices in Washington, D.C. and Santa Monica, CA. Find us on the web at: www.ConsumerWatchdog.org.