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.1 340B builds healthier communities through a shared mission to patients in need at no cost to taxpayers.
340B Ensures Access to Essential Care
The federal 340B drug pricing program supports health care providers that serve a substantial percentage of people living with low incomes and those living in rural communities.2 340B allows eligible nonprofit hospitals, health centers, and clinics to purchase outpatient pharmaceuticals at a discount, dispense low-cost drugs through pharmacy partners, 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 American taxpayers – cover the cost of this care.
340B is Proven to Bridge Critical Gaps in Care
340B savings equip 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 such services as behavioral and mental health care, HIV/AIDS care, treatment of opioid dependency, and programs that support access to free and discounted drugs.3 Hospitals also use savings to fill the gaps created when public and private health plans do not cover the full cost of care, leaving hospitals to make up the difference.4
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 oversight underscores 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 and services that improve health outcomes. These include decreasing unnecessary hospital visits, improving diabetics’ hemoglobin A1C levels, better patient adherence to drug regimens, increased detection of early-stage cancers, and lowered risks of blood clots.7
Protecting 340B Is CRUCIAL
Protecting 340B is crucial for the health of America’s patients and communities.
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