Good Samaritan | Indiana Case Study

The Value of the 340B Program Case Study

Who is Good Samaritan?

Good Samaritan, based in Vincennes, Ind., is a county-owned, not-for-profit health system that serves a 10-county rural region across southwest Indiana and southeast Illinois. For 118 years, Good Samaritan has been a mission-driven, community-focused institution designed to support economically vulnerable and underserved populations, particularly communities where most residents run small businesses or are employed by the agricultural and manufacturing industries.

Who Does Good Samaritan Serve?

As the largest health care provider in the area serving a patient population of nearly 230,000, and Knox County's leading employer with approximately 1,800 employees, Good Samaritan is a true pillar of the region. 

Good Samaritan’s health system operates a wide variety of primary care and over twenty-five specialty care physician services, including orthopedics, radiology/ imaging, women’s health, surgery, oncology and cardiac care, in addition to serving as a Level III trauma center and operating Emergency Medical Services (EMS) in partnership with local municipalities. With 70% of patients insured by Medicare and Medicaid, Good Samaritan relies heavily on government reimbursement to cover the cost of care. Moreover, approximately five percent of patients seen at Good Samaritan each year are uninsured, and the hospital covers the full cost of their care. 
 

What 340B Means for Good Samaritan — and its Patients

Good Samaritan is designated as a Rural Referral Center (RRC) and has established partnerships with community pharmacies. The dollars generated from these partnerships are used to benefit the community through patient assistance and outreach programs. The health system also operates a specialty pharmacy that is focused on ensuring convenient access, streamlined processes, comprehensive support and collaborative care for the health system’s sickest and most clinically complex patients. Without the support of the 340B Drug Pricing Program, Good Samaritan would be unable to operate this specialty pharmacy. Patients would need to travel at least 65 miles to the next nearest specialty pharmacy to access prescribed medications — an impossibility for many.

To help Good Samaritan meet the comprehensive needs of its community, the 340B program has been crucial in providing local access to oncology and cardiac care — two services that are in dire need and that patients would otherwise have to travel an hour or more outside the region to access.

Giving to Patients to Cover Care Costs

Since April 2024, Good Samaritan has contributed a significant portion of its 340B savings to the Good Samaritan Hospital Foundation’s patient assistance fund, which benefits low-income individuals and families.

Specifically, savings help support patient access to durable medical equipment like wheelchairs, hospital beds and portable oxygen equipment, and help cover the costs the hospital incurs in caring for underinsured and uninsured patients. Moreover, for patients who are struggling to keep their jobs or maintain insurance, the Foundation provides support to help them fill their life-sustaining prescriptions at minimal, or in many cases, no cost.

Community and Workforce Benefits from 340B

340B program savings have provided more than $340,000 to the Good Samaritan Foundation for patient assistance. The funds are used to help patients get the medication and treatment they need but can’t afford. Their program-funded specialty pharmacy also offers medication counseling, leading to better medication adherence and preventing costly and unnecessary readmissions.

To support a healthier workforce, Good Samaritan also leverages a portion of its 340B savings to provide GLP-1 weight loss medications to its employees and passes on the discounted 340B price for these drugs (which are not always covered by insurers) directly to employees.

Patient Testimonial: Rob Meadows Rob Meadows was a healthy 40-year-old, until he started feeling a pain in his side. After going to Good Samaritan’s Emergency Department, doctors discovered he had Stage 4 non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. While fighting cancer was physically and emotionally exhausting, it also became a financial struggle. But thanks to the 340B Drug Pricing Program, Good Samaritan was able to purchase Rob’s cancer medication at a reduced cost so he could continue his lifesaving treatment. To read Rob’s full story, click here.

340B Hospitals Need Support

For hospitals like Good Samaritan that serve predominantly rural communities, with many patients underinsured, uninsured or facing financial hardship, participation in the 340B program offers a lifeline that helps ensure the hospital can fulfill its mission to provide patients with the highest quality care. Without savings from the 340B program, it would be challenging for eligible hospitals to expand access to care and make medications affordable across the patients and communities they serve.