Another New Study of Differences in Cancer Drug Spending Could Have 340B Implications
On Friday, the nonpartisan Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) made headlines (see story below) when its staff said it could find no link between evidence of 340B hospitals’ higher spending on drugs to treat prostate and lung cancer and incentives created by 340B discounts. The MedPAC report is expected to include an examination of the effects of patient characteristics on drug spending, something that past research on the subject has struggled to tease out.
Another new study just out from the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) finds that hospitals (340B and non-340B) charge private payers more for cancer drugs than physician offices. This study was funded by the pharmaceutical and insurance industries and others. In contrast to MedPAC, EBRI suggests the connection between 340B status and higher charges is strong. Look for the drug industry and its allies to say policy makers should listen to EBRI, ignore MedPAC, and scale 340B back.
On Friday, the nonpartisan Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) made headlines (see story below) when its staff said it could find no link between evidence of 340B hospitals’ higher spending on drugs to treat prostate and lung cancer and incentives created by 340B discounts. The MedPAC report is expected to include an examination of the effects of patient characteristics on drug spending, something that past research on the subject has struggled to tease out.
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