Pharmaceutical Money In Politics

FACT SHEET

AMERICANS FOR CAMPAIGN REFORM

Money in Politics & Prescription Drugs Pharmaceuticals Invested Nearly $2 billion in Campaign Contributions and Lobbying • Individuals, lobbyists, and political action committees in

the pharmaceutical industry contributed $167 million to federal candidates from 1990 to 2008 • Members of the House and Senate received an average of $25,277 and $81,891, respectively, in pharmaceutical industry contributions in 2008 • Pharmaceutical industry spending to lobby the federal government exceeded $1.5 billion from 1998 to 2008, more than any other industry • The ratio of pharmaceutical industry lobbyists to Members of Congress is approximately 2:1

Pharmaceutical Industry Money Targeted Key Committees and Incumbents • Pharmaceutical industry contributions were targeted at

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members of the relevant commerce and tax committees responsibility for industry regulation The top ten Senate recipients of industry contributions in 2008 served on the key oversight committees: Appropriations, Budget, Finance, or Commerce Members of the relevant Senate committees received an average of $210,432 in industry contributions, nearly three times the Senate average of $81,891 Nine of the top ten targeted House recipients in 2008 served on the Energy and Commerce or Ways and Means Committees, or in House leadership Targeted Members received an average of $163,280 in industry contributions, six times the House average Pharmaceutical industry contributions favored incumbents by a factor of nine to one (89%)

Pharmaceutical Industry Contributions Pegged to Key Legislation

Figure 1: Pharmaceutical Industry Campaign Contributions (millions), 1990-2008 $30 Soft Money PAC Individual

$25 $20 $15 $10 $5 $0

1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008

Figure 2: Pharmaceutical Industry Lobbying Expenditures (millions), 1999-2008 $250

$200 Lobbying $150

$100

$50

$0 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

Figure 3: Top Ten Pharmaceutical Indusrty Contributors and Party Breakdown, 2008

• Industry contributions rose to $29.6 million prior to

Congressional approval of the Medicare Modernization Act (MMA) of 2003, which featured the $400-$600 billion Medicare Part D prescriptions program • The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers Assoc. (PhRMA) spent $30.3 million on lobbying from 2002-2003, among the top 5 spenders overall • 15 members of Congress, congressional staff, and federal officials involved in MMA passage accepted jobs as pharmaceutical lobbyists after passage, including the former Medicare director and the chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee Sources: Center for Responsive Politics analysis of Federal Election Commission data; Center for Public Integrity; Senate Office of Public

Rank Organization

Amount

Dems

Repubs

1

Pfizer Inc

$1,645,225

51%

49%

2

Amgen Inc

$1,310,477

50%

50%

3

Johnson & Johnson

$1,165,245

61%

39%

4

GlaxoSmithKline

$1,135,700

41%

59%

5

Merck & Co

$930,822

51%

49%

6

Eli Lilly & Co

$928,903

48%

52%

7

Abbott Laboratories

$906,296

47%

53%

8

AstraZeneca Pharm

$853,470

50%

50%

9

Roche Group

$851,511

68%

32%

10

McKesson Corp

$672,961

44%

56%

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8/25/09