The Hill reports today that insurance companies -- who have fought hard against health reforms like the creation of a new public health insurance plan -- spent $38 million in 2009 to influence the direction of the health care debate. Here are some of the biggest spenders:
WellPoint: The Indiana-based insurer spent $4.7 million lobbying Congress last year, an increase of 21 percent from its expenditures in 2008.
UnitedHealth Group: The largest of all health insurance companies spent $4.5 million on lobbyists last year, an increase of 7 percent from 2008.
Humana: The insurance mega-company "showed the biggest increase in its lobbying spending among ... insurers." It spent $3.2 million lobbying in 2009, which is an 80 percent increase from 2008.
America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP): The health insurance industry's lobbying group spent $8.9 million on lobbyists in 2009, a 20 percent increase from the previous year.