Healthcare lobbying has drawn intense scrutiny and ignited worries that select groups may be wielding outsized influence on policymaking, as hospitals, insurers, drug manufacturers and devicemakers hustle to represent their interests in Washington.
The new study analyzed data from OpenSecrets, a nonprofit that tracks money in politics, to quantify the scope of that influence. It found that in 2020, pharmaceutical and health product manufacturers spent the most on lobbying activities, at $308 million. They were followed by providers at $287 million, and payers at $81 million.
