As Interest in Legislation Grows, Congressional Research Service Issues Back-to-Back Reports on 340B Program

Congressional Research Service wordmark and logo
The Congressional Research Service issued a summary of the range of policy actions affecting 340B contract pharmacy use in recent years

Congress’ nonpartisan research office has issued a four-page backgrounder on litigation over the 340B contract pharmacy program and a two-pager on the entire drug discount program. They could be a sign that 340B hearings and/or bills are coming.

The Congressional

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Twice as Many Providers as in May Are Submitting 340B Drug Claims Data to 340B ESP, Pharma Contractor Says

340B ESP infographic
340B ESP says more that 1,000 covered entities—double the number in May—are submitting 340B drug claims data to it to be able to keep dispensing manufacturers’ drugs to patients at multiple contract pharmacies.

More than 1,000 covered entities—double the number in May—are submitting 340B drug claims data to Second Sight Solutions’ 340B ESP platform to be able to keep dispensing manufacturers’ drugs to patients at multiple contract pharmacies, a senior 340B ESP leader

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CBO Raises Changing 340B Patient Definition to Ease Pressure on Commercial Insurers

Congressional Budget Office report title page
Changing the 340B patient definition “might reduce hospitals’ and physicians’ incentives to consolidate,” the CBO says in a new analysis.

Changing the 340B patient definition “might reduce hospitals’ and physicians’ incentives to consolidate,” but to what extent “remains highly uncertain,” the Congressional Budget Office says in a new policy analysis.

House Budget Committee Chair John Yarmuth (D-Ky.) asked CBO to

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340B HIV Providers Warn of “Drug Industry Disinformation Campaign”

Shannon Stephenson headshot
Drug manufacturers’ true goal is to cripple the 340B program, says Shannon Stephenson, RWC-340B President and CEO of Cempa Community Cares.

Ryan White Clinics for 340B Access (RWC-340B), a national organization of 340B HIV/AIDS medical providers, has published a detailed rebuttal of several recently published articles criticizing the 340B program.  RWC-340B accuses article authors—many of whom are supported by the drug

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PhRMA, BIO, and Others Unleash a Torrent of 340B Hospital Criticism

screenshot of PhRMA blog post September 15, 2022
Headline from recent blog post by PhRMA spokesperson Nicole Longo.

340B disproportionate share hospitals (DSH) in 2020 spent 2.2 times more on outpatient drugs per commercially insured patient than non-340B DSH hospitals and 2.6 times more than other types of 340B hospitals, a new drug industry-funded study shows.

The

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340B Report Exclusive: GAO Is Asking Hospitals if They Share 340B Savings with Low-Income Uninsured Patients at Contract Pharmacies

GAO office building
The Government Accountability Office this month recommended that HHS and Congress take long-proposed actions to better ensure 340B program compliance and Medicare’s financial stability.

A federal watchdog agency wants to know if 340B hospitals give low-income uninsured patients a break on drug prices at their contract and in-house pharmacies as part of the agency’s evaluation of a law that helps some hospitals forced out

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U.S. Uninsured Rate Dipped Last Year, Census Bureau Says

bar charts depicting percent of people by health insurance coverage type and change from 2020 to 2021
The U.S. uninsured rate declined slightly in 2021 to 8.3%, the U.S. Census Bureau reported this week.

About 8.3% of people in the United States, or 27.2 million, had no health insurance at any point during 2021, down from an estimated 8.6%, or 28.3 million, in 2020, the U.S. Census Bureau reported Tuesday.

The National Center for

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Health Policy Think Tank Commonwealth Fund Issues 340B Primer

pie chart of 340B covered entity purchases in 2021
The Commonwealth Fund has issued a primer that explores how 340B program growth has spawned controversy over the drug discount program.

The Commonwealth Fund, a well-respected think tank focused on promoting a high-performance and equitable healthcare system, published a primer on the 340B program last week, highlighting the program’s growth and the controversy its growth has sparked.    

“We did the report

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In Violation of ‘Spirit’ of Anti-Kickback Law, Drug Manufacturer Donations to Patient Assistance Charities Result in Bigger Profits, Study Finds

screenshot of Health Affairs article title
Drug manufacturers' donations to patient assistance charities effectively subsidize the purchase of their own drugs, a new study published in Health Affairs concludes. PhRMA counters that coupons and other forms of assistance help patients afford their out-of-pocket costs.

In a new study published in Health Affairs, researchers find that drug manufacturers are likely to profit from donations they make to patient assistance charities that help patients cover out-of-pocket costs associated with expensive treatments for serious and often rare

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Restoring 340B Hospitals’ Part B Drug Payments Would Cut Net Outpatient Payments for 80% of Hospitals, Private Cancer Doctor-Funded Study Finds

Outpatient exterior sign on hospital
80% of hospitals in Medicare’s outpatient prospective payment system would see their net payments decline next year if CMS ends a nearly 30% cut in 340B hospitals’ drug payments, according to a private oncologist group funded study.

Eighty percent of all hospitals in Medicare’s outpatient prospective payment system—including 52% of all 340B hospitals—would see their net OPPS payments decline next year if Medicare ends a nearly 30% cut in 340B hospitals’ drug payments that began in 2018,

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