Boehner Spokesman’s Surprise: Leaving Capitol Hill For AHIP

Brendan Buck joins America's Health Insurance Plans -- a group representing America's insurers.

The Washington Post: Boehner Spokesman Brendan Buck Departing For AHIP
Brendan Buck, who has served as one of Boehner's top spokesmen for more than three years, will depart today to head up communications for America's Health Insurance Plans, which represents thousands of health-care providers. Buck is a towering, lanky presence in the U.S. Capitol perhaps best known to political reporters nationwide as one of the few voices who speaks on behalf of Boehner and the broader House Republican Conference. He has focused especially on rapid response to comments and policy introduced by President Obama and congressional Democrats (O’Keefe, 5/12).

USA Today: Boehner Aide Takes Job With Health Insurance Lobby
As the health insurance industry’s trade group, AHIP supports the law’s mandate that individuals obtain health insurance. The trade group has praised the Affordable Care Act’s ability to expand insurance coverage. To that end, AHIP has fought against provisions that could increase consumer costs, such as the health insurance tax and new benefit mandates that will get passed down to consumers (Camia, 5/12).

Politico: John Boehner’s Brendan Buck Joins AHIP As Vice President
Buck, 32, a native of Alpharetta, Ga., has been Boehner’s press secretary for the past three years, and the speaker described him as “crucial” to earning back the public’s trust after Republicans took over the chamber (Allen, 5/12).

The CT Mirror: Insurers Pick Obamacare Foe As Industry Spokesman
"Brendan's experience and skill set will allow him to hit the ground running on day one,” America’s Health Insurance Plans President Karen Ignagni said in a statement. “He's an effective communicator who knows how to tackle complex policy issues and skillfully navigate an ever-changing health care and media environment. We are delighted to welcome him to our team" (Radelat, 5/12).

The Fiscal Times: Boehner Aide Flip-Flops On Obamacare
The surprise lies in the fact that over the past several years, Buck’s boss has helped facilitate dozens of votes in the House of Representatives aimed at repealing, crippling, or otherwise undermining the Affordable Care Act -- a law AHIP plainly supports (Garver, 5/12).