Politics of Pain: New York Pols Took Millions from Industry Donors

 

By John R. Roby

Proposed state policies intended to control the opioid abuse epidemic over the past decade have faced a $3.7 million roadblock — the amount of money spent by drug companies and related advocacy groups to influence New York lawmakers.

A joint investigation by The Associated Press and the Center for Public Integrity found members of the Pain Care Forum, composed of drugmakers and allied advocacy groups, spent more than $880 million on campaign contributions and lobbying over the past decade as they worked to influence state and federal policies.

The groups have an array of political interests that include opioid advocacy, and their spending was eight times that of the gun lobby during the same period. By comparison, groups advocating for limits on opioid prescribing spent about $4 million. 

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Source: pressconnects.com (via The Empire Report)