Because of 340B
Because of 340B, patients in need have access to a vital safety net for essential health care. 340B bridges critical gaps in access to specialized services, connecting underserved patients and communities with the care they need. 340B helps improve patients’ outcomes and improves their lives. At no cost to taxpayers.
340B Ensures Access to Essential Care
The 340B drug pricing program supports health care providers that disproportionately care for patients with low incomes and those in rural communities. 340B allows eligible hospitals, health centers, and clinics to purchase outpatient pharmaceuticals at a discount, expand access to low-cost drugs through pharmacy partners1, and invest those savings into programs and services that increase patients’ access to needed care. That enables participating hospitals to offer more comprehensive services for communities and reach more patients in need. Drug company discounts – not taxpayers – cover the cost of this care2.
340B is Proved to Bridge Critical Gaps in Care
340B savings enable hospitals to offer health care services and support to patients in need that they otherwise could not provide. These services are tailored to the specific needs of the patients and communities they serve, including behavioral and mental health care, HIV/AIDS care, treatment of opioid use disorder, and programs that support access to free and discounted drugs3. Hospitals also use the savings to fill gaps created when payers do not cover the full cost of care, leaving hospitals to make up the difference4.
340B IS Accountable & Transparent
340B is accountable and transparent in how it benefits patients in need by boosting access to affordable medications and crucial health care services. 340B hospitals are subject to rigorous reporting and auditing to ensure compliance with federal requirements. They undergo annual recertification to demonstrate 340B eligibility. They document care for patients in need through annual Medicare cost reports5, IRS filings6, and other reporting. The federal government also audits hundreds of 340B providers every year. This thorough and rigorous oversight ensures that 340B hospitals use their savings to benefit patients and improve communities.
340B Keeps Communities Healthy
Research demonstrates that communities are healthier because of 340B. The benefits that 340B hospitals provide to patients come through increased access to health care programs, treatments, and services that improve health outcomes. These include decreasing unnecessary hospital visits, improving diabetics’ hemoglobin A1C levels, improving patient adherence to drug regimens, detecting early-stage cancers, and lowering the risks of blood clots7.
support the 340b patients act
340B hospitals are the backbone of the nation’s health care safety net, providing essential services to patients with low incomes and those living in rural America. 340B hospitals play a vital role in delivering 77% of Medicaid hospital care, providing 67% of the nation’s unpaid care, and offering comprehensive specialty services that otherwise might not be available. 340B helps lower health care costs and enable doctors, nurses, and pharmacists to provide expanded care for the benefit of their community—all at no cost to the taxpayer.
The 340B PATIENTS Act will end harmful drug company restrictions on 340B savings that are vital for protecting patients and communities. By restricting 340B pharmacy partnerships, big pharma has siphoned billions from the health care safety net solely to bolster its profits. The 340B PATIENTS Act stops this damaging behavior. We call on Congress to support this vital legislation. Learn more.
1 Vital 340B-Supported Patient Services Threatened as Manufacturer Restrictions Cut Into Savings, 340B Health, July 2023
2 Faces of 340B: Patient and Provider Videos, 340B Health
3 340B DSH Hospitals Serve Higher Share of Patients with Low Incomes. Dobson DaVanzo. September 2022
4 340B DSH Hospitals Increased Uncompensated Care in 2020 Despite Significant Financial Stress. Dobson DaVanzo. July 2022
5 Form CMS-2552-10, Worksheet S-10 – Hospital Uncompensated and Indigent Care Data. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
6 Instructions for Schedule H (Form 990)(2022). Internal Revenue Service.
7 340B Program Savings Improve Patient Health Outcomes: Case Examples from the Field, 340B Health, September 2019