US health lobbyists outnumbered members of Congress by eight to one in 2009

Lobbyists outnumbered US congressmen and women by more than eight to one in 2009 during the debate over health reform, and total spending on lobbying on health issues reached $544m (£370m; €400m), two watchdog groups have found.

US law requires lobbyists dealing with Congress to file annual disclosure forms. The non-profit Center for Public Integrity created a searchable database from these filings of 4525 registered lobbyists whose activities cost at least $5000 (www.publicintegrity.org/articles/entry/1953/).

It broadly grouped their affiliations and found that trade, advocacy, and professional organisations led the pack in lobbying on health, with 745 lobbyists. Among the most active were AARP (formerly the American Association of Retired Persons), the …