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Familiar faces among health industry lobbyists
David Nexon had a big problem. An early version of national healthcare legislation contained a $40-billion tax aimed squarely at members of the medical device trade association he represents.
Nexon, a former advisor to the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), went to work. He marshaled 14 people like himself -- lobbyists who were once congressional aides, many of them from staffs of congressional leaders or committees that had a hand in crafting the healthcare overhaul.
When Senate Democrats unveiled their bill in mid-November, Nexon's handiwork was evident. Though still large, the tax on device makers was halved.
Nexon's team is an illustration of how deeply the healthcare industry has embedded itself on Capitol Hill, using former aides of lawmakers and ex-lawmakers themselves.