Statement By 340B Health Interim President and CEO Maureen Testoni on AHA’s 340B Program Stewardship Principles
WASHINGTON, D.C.—340B Health, the nation’s leading advocate for hospitals and health systems participating in the 340B drug pricing program, strongly supports the American Hospital Association’s (AHA) initiative to further increase transparency in the program through rigorous principles for good stewardship.
The steps the AHA announced today have already been taken by 340B hospitals across the country. Since 2015, hundreds of 340B hospitals have voluntarily completed a “340B Health Impact Profile” detailing their savings from the 340B program and the services those savings make possible. We are pleased that this hard work and commitment will make these pioneering hospitals some of the first to meet the AHA standards. Hospitals are among the most transparent healthcare organizations, as they commonly share detailed information on the care they deliver and their finances with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
340B hospitals are proud of the work they do to care for their patients and communities. 340B hospitals are able to reduce their drug costs by receiving discounts on the prices for many outpatient drugs. These safety-net hospitals use those savings to stretch scarce resources to care for more patients and provide more services, especially to patients with low incomes and those living in rural communities. In 2015, 340B hospitals provided $26 billion in uncompensated and unreimbursed care, or 60 percent of all such care in the U.S. while representing only 38 percent of acute care hospitals. These hospitals provide services that are frequently underpaid including trauma care, HIV/AIDS care, as well as opioid and other substance-abuse treatment.
Contact: Richard Sorian at (202) 536-2285 or richard.sorian@340bhealth.org