AHA urges Congress to maintain support for 340B program

Congress should preserve the 340B Drug Pricing Program because it helps hospitals and other eligible entities improve access to comprehensive health care services for more patients, especially low-income and uninsured patients, the AHA today told the House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee. In a statement submitted to the committee for a hearing examining the 340B program, AHA included examples of how large, urban-based medical centers and small, rural hospitals alike use the savings they receive on the discounted drugs to reinvest in programs that enhance patient services and access to care, as well as providing free or reduced-priced prescription drugs to poorer residents. “Given the increasingly high cost of pharmaceuticals, the 340B program remains critical,” and scaling it back would have “devastating consequences for patients and communities,” the AHA said. Officials from the Health Resources and Services Administration’s Office of Pharmacy Affairs, which oversees the 340B program, Government Accountability Office and the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General testified at the hearing.