CITIZENS FOR BETTER MEDICARE: Group Expands Ad Campaign
The drug industry-backed coalition Citizens for Better Medicare is expanding an ad campaign that backs legislators who support providing a Medicare prescription drug benefit through private insurers, adding eight House districts to the 18 where television ads are already running, CongressDaily reports. The ads are designed to bolster the campaigns of incumbent legislators who have opposed Democratic proposals to provide a prescription drug benefit directly through Medicare and who have supported Republican- backed legislation that relies on private insurance. The ad campaign will now include the districts of GOP Reps. Robert Aderholt (Ala.), Bob Barr (Ga.), Mark Foley (Fla.), Jim Kolbe (Ariz.), Paul Ryan (Wis.), Pete Sessions (Texas), Charles Taylor (N.C.) and Lee Terry (Neb.). The ads air this week and will run until Nov. 7 (CongressDaily, 10/23). Legislators representing districts where the ads are already running include the following: Republican Reps. Charles Bass (N.H.), Jay Dickey (Ark.), Saxby Chambliss (Ga.), Robin Hayes (N.C.), Walter Jones (N.C.), Steve Kuykendall (Calif.), James Rogan (Calif.), George Nethercutt (Wash.), Clay Shaw (Fla.), Tom Tancredo (Colo.), Edward Whitfield (Ky.) and Heather Wilson (N.M.). The ads also are running in the district of Democratic Rep. Ralph Hall (Texas), who supported the GOP private insurance measure ( California Healthline, 9/13).
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