In the first half of 2012, Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America spent $10.15 million lobbying the federal government, the most of any entity in the health sector, data from the U.S. Senate Office of Public Records show.
The American Medical Association was second in lobbying at $9.05 million and the American Hospital Association was third with $8.12 million. The next two spots were filled by pharmaceutical companies: Merck ($5.89 million) and Pfizer ($5.88 million), according to a search of the senate’s Lobbying Disclosure Act Database, which does not yet contain data for the third quarter.
The largest spender overall in the first half of this year was the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which reported $42.72 million in lobbying expenses.