Announcer 1: They scratched his back.

Announcer 2: Ted Stevens got $581,000 in campaign cash from insurance, health and drug interests.

Source: Campaign Money Watch analyzed data obtained from the Center for Responsive Politics, a non-partisan organization that tracks and codes campaign finance data by industry. The campaign finance data include individual contributions ($200+) and from Political Action Committees (PACs) to campaign committees and leadership PACs. Data for the 2008 cycle were last downloaded in August 2008.

The data include contributions made to Sen. Stevens’ campaign committee and to his leadership PAC.

The total amount of contributions from the insurance industry to Stevens is $206,632. The total amount of contributions to the health industry (which includes the pharmaceutical industry) to Stevens is $375,100. Therefore, the grand total from insurance and health industry contributions to Stevens is $581,732.

Announcer 1: He scratched theirs.

Announcer 2: Stevens voted against the patient’s bill of rights...

Source: Sen. Stevens voted “no” on S. 1052, Bipartisan Patient Protection Act, vote #220, June 29, 2001. This bill defined a wide range of rights for patients, guaranteeing access to emergency care, medical specialists and an independent medical review of any decisions denying claims for health benefits. (See Robert Pear, “Senators Seek a Compromise On Patients' Rights Measure,” The New York Times, June 23, 2001.)

Announcer 2: … and voted to stop Medicare from negotiating lower prices for prescription drugs.

Source: Sen. Stevens voted “yes” on S. 1, The Prescription Drug and Medicare Improvement Act of 2003, Vote # 262, June 27, 2003. This bill expressly prohibited the federal government from negotiating with drug companies.

In addition, Sen. Stevens voted “no” on S. 3, The Medicare Prescription Drug Price Negotiation Act of 2007, Vote #132, April 18, 2007. This bill would have required that the federal government negotiate for lower drug prices.

Announcer 1: And what did you get?

Announcer 2: Higher prices for the prescription drugs seniors on Medicare need.

Source: As Families USA wrote in its “No Bargain” report in January 2007, “For each of the 20 drugs most frequently prescribed to seniors, the lowest price available through any of the largest Part D insurers is higher than the lowest price negotiated by the VA. Moreover, because prices vary across plans, the actual prices that many beneficiaries are paying are likely to be substantially higher than the lowest prices listed in this report.”
         

Announcer 1: Isn’t it time we stopped pay-to-play politics in Washington?

Announcer 2: Public Campaign Action Fund’s Campaign Money Watch is responsible for the content of this ad.