The federal government recently released information on the total purchases that hospitals, health centers, and clinics made through the 340B drug pricing program in 2022. The Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA) reported that these purchases reached $53.7 billion, meaning 340B covered entities spent $9.8 billion more on 340B drugs than they did in 2021. This … [Read more...]
Ideas for 340B Changes Could Lead to Legislation
Amid complaints about unilateral drug company restrictions on the 340B drug pricing program and mounting pressure from industry-backed advocates for even more 340B changes to favor drugmakers, a bipartisan group of six U.S. senators have taken a proactive step by asking for ideas to ensure “stability” for 340B. This move came in the form of a request for information (RFI) … [Read more...]
Help From 340B After a Rare Diagnosis and an Unaffordable Bill
Nov. 27, 2023— Gary Chandler was in good company when he visited Ascension Via Christi St. Francis in Wichita, Kansas, because he was feeling unwell. One-quarter of patients at the health system’s three hospitals in the Wichita area are on Medicaid or are uninsured, like Chandler was when he came in. But his diagnosis was much more uncommon – aplastic anemia, a rare blood … [Read more...]
New Research Finds No Evidence 340B Discounts Affect Prescribing
June 15, 2023— Newly published research illustrates that while 340B hospitals tend to treat patients who are sicker and in greater need of care, they do not prescribe more expensive drugs than non-340B hospitals after those differences are taken into account. The latest evidence appears in the peer-reviewed Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). Researchers … [Read more...]
UPDATED: Drugmakers Cutting 340B Discounts Reported Record Revenues in 2021
January 13, 2023– Note: This story is updated to include information for Biogen, which announced 340B restrictions in December 2022. The 19 drug companies that have imposed restrictions on safety-net hospital access to 340B drug pricing program discounts collectively brought more than $660 billion in revenues in 2021. The banner year for the companies occurred as hospitals … [Read more...]
For Patients, Symptoms of Drugmaker 340B Restrictions Include Shortness of Breath, Hospitalization
Dec. 23, 2022— The examples of worsened health outcomes for patients from drug company restrictions on 340B pricing to safety-net hospitals continue to mount. At Riverside Regional Medical Center in Virginia, one discharged patient with diabetes was readmitted to the hospital within days due to delayed access to an insulin medication for which drug companies had restricted … [Read more...]
End to Medicare 340B Payment Cuts in Sight
Dec. 9, 2022— On Jan. 1, hospitals participating in the 340B drug pricing program will start off the new year with something they have not had since 2017 – full Medicare payment rates for 340B-purchased drugs. While those hospitals say the end to the cuts is welcome news, they continue to wait for repayments to remedy the nearly five years’ worth of pay cuts that many 340B … [Read more...]