Today's message from the DSCC.

Health Care Premiums Rise and Senate Republicans Get Millions in Return

(New York, NY)- Over the past decade, health care premiums rose seven times faster than family incomes in New York while Senate Republicans received millions from health care interests. A new report from the respected health care advocacy group, Families USA, shows that between 2000 and 2007, health insurance premiums for employer-sponsored coverage in New York rose by 80.7%, while median wages went up by only 11 percent, a rate that was fifth worst in the nation and significantly higher than the national average.

Why have health care premiums risen at such an alarming rate? Senate Republicans, protecting their special interest fundraising friends, led HMO rate deregulation efforts in Albany for the past decade, and won complete deregulation of HMO rates in 2000.

In return, Senate Republicans have received record amounts of campaign contributions from the insurance, pharmaceutical and health care industries.

Senate Republican campaign accounts took in over $2.4 million from insurance companies, over $1.5 million from big drug companies and over $3.2 million from health care interests, receiving a total of $7,371,608 from contributors who directly benefited from the sky-high health insurance rates Senate Republicans engineered.

Why are New Yorkers paying so much for medical care? Because health care interests are paying for the support of Senate Republicans.