NY hospital lobby's power stretches to DC in stimulus battle

WASHINGTON (AP) — The stated mission of The Greater New York Hospital Association is simple enough: to help members deliver “the finest patient care in the most cost-effective way.” But it’s more complicated than that.

While the association, which represents health care providers at the epicenter of the pandemic, is a nonprofit organization, it has the balance sheet of a robust private company, pays executive salaries that top $3 million and spent millions more to lobby in Washington for some of the nation's most profitable hospitals.

So when it came time to secure its share of the record $3.6 trillion in federal stimulus money, the association was well positioned. It helped steer over $11.5 billion in funding to the state, with billions more on the way soon, in a competition with other hospital groups, major corporations and thousands of small businesses.

“On the surface, the purpose (of the stimulus) is to relieve financial damage caused by COVID-19. But in reality, it’s likely to actually increase the disparity,” said Ge Bai, a Johns Hopkins University professor who studies the economics of hospitals. “It’s very political. The money coming from the federal government is a zero sum game and we have some extremely powerful, large and rich hospitals.”

The story of how the New York group leveraged its power during the pandemic shows that the Washington influence industry functions much the same way in a public health crisis as it does in normal times, where the better heeled and connected get far closer to a desired result.

Many smaller organizations say the group’s connections and resources make it hard to compete.

“We did feel that we were being a little outgunned,” said Maggie Elehwany, vice president of government affairs and policy for the National Rural Health Association, which has...