SPOTLIGHT: Pharma industry lobbying may have paid off

Last year, the pharmaceutical industry was able to sideline more than one legislative proposal it didn't like, including one designed to lower drug prices and another restricting direct-to-consumer ads. That's probably not a coincidence, however. Last year the industry's leading trade group, PhRMA, spent more than $22 million on lobbying, up 25 percent from 2006. Given the impending shifts in power, they may spend even more this year, Hill watchers predict. FiercePharma