A New York medical group fills politicians' coffers. This House Republican is helping to promote them.
LaLota is locked in a tight New York House race against Democrat Avlon on eastern Long Island, who a recent poll shows is within striking distance. Their face-off is one of six that could determine which party controls Congress next year.
The incumbent Republican's Sept. 24 'advocacy event' for New York Cancer & Blood Specialists portrays him coming in for a mock exam to simulate the care a patient would receive. It's similar to an August 2022 production from the group featuring Long Island Republican Rep. Andrew Garbarino.
'Obviously, the morale of both your patients and your staff is quite high. And the upbeat spirit here, I think, is a tremendous help to the patient and the patient's family,' LaLota tells Eagle in the video.
New York Cancer & Blood Specialists' political activity has come under scrutiny before. Vacirca contributed about $50,000 to fraudster Rep. George Santos, which the oncologist later said he regretted. Vacirca also gave $60,000 to the PAC that then donated to Zeldin's gubernatorial campaign, violating campaign finance rules in the process.
Santos, Zeldin and Conquering Cancer PAC at one point were all managed by treasurer Nancy Marks, who pleaded guilty to fraud charges about a year before Santos did the same.
Vacirca and Zeldin have a bond stretching years back. The hematologist treated the Long Island Republican's leukemia and helped him achieve complete remission in 2021. Three years earlier, Vacirca taped a robocall for Zeldin's House reelection campaign that attacked the Democratic candidate. He was later forced to suspend it.
The Conquering Cancer PAC's contributions lean Republican but are bipartisan, a review of its FEC filings shows. (Its website notes, 'Cancer is the ultimate non-partisan issue.') In the past year, the PAC has donated to Garbarino, Rep. Nick Langworthy (R-N.Y.), Democratic state Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, state Sen. Gustavo Rivera and Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-N.Y.) as well as congressional candidates across the country.
Avlon, a former CNN host running to unseat LaLota, seized the opportunity to knock the incumbent.
'Pretending to be doing 'advocacy' while collecting over $100,000 in campaign contributions is dishonest and low even for a professional patronage politician,' the Democratic challenger said. 'This is why people hate politics and distrust honest public servants.'
New York Cancer & Blood Specialists physicians have cited a commitment to patient care, with Vacirca telling Newsday he supports candidates who advocate for reducing the influence of health insurance companies and prescription drug middlemen.
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- PoliticsHealth#Republican,Democratic,Democrat,Zeldin,LaLota,Avlon,Santos,AndrewGarbarino,Eagle,GeorgeSantos,NancyMarks,Garbarino,NickLangworthy,AndreaStewart-Cousins,GustavoRivera,TomSuozzi,Vacirca,NewYorkCancer&BloodSpecialists,ConqueringCancerPAC,NewYorkHouse,Congress,NewYorkCancer&BloodSpecialists',House,FEC,PAC,R-N.Y.,SenateMajority,D-N.Y.,CNN,Newsday,reducing
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