A bipartisan bill introduced on April 6 by U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD) would address concerns from healthcare providers across the country — particularly in rural areas — that have seen their access to the 340B Drug Pricing Program threatened by pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), insurers, and pharmaceutical companies.
Rep. Johnson signed on as the lead original cosponsor of the Preserving Rules Ordered for the Entities Covered Through (PROTECT) 340B Act of 2023, H.R. 2534, which is sponsored by U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) to prohibit health insurers and PBMs from discriminating against 340B program providers or their contract pharmacies on the basis of their status as providers or pharmacies that dispense 340B drugs, according to a bill summary provided by the lawmakers.
“340B is an essential program for rural and low-income hospitals and patients,” Rep. Johnson said. “South Dakotans rely on this program to access affordable drugs and medicines they need. The PROTECT 340B Act will ensure the quality of care for communities that need it.”
The 340B Drug Pricing Program, which Congress enacted in 1992, requires that pharmaceutical companies give safety-net and rural healthcare providers discounts on their drugs, in exchange for having their drugs covered by Medicaid, according to a bill summary provided by the lawmakers that notes the program has helped protect patients who are low-income, live in underserved communities, or suffer from serious chronic illnesses from skyrocketing drug prices.
If enacted, H.R. 2534 would prevent companies from treating 340B providers differently regarding fee reimbursements, participation in standard or preferred networks, or inventory management systems, the summary says, and from interfering in a patient’s choice to receive drugs from a 340B pharmacy.
“In recent years, we’ve seen for-profit insurance companies and the shadowy middlemen of the pharmaceutical industry — known as pharmacy benefit managers — undermine these discounts, target 340B providers, and threaten the very survival of this program,” said Rep. Spanberger. “The PROTECT 340B Act would hold these actors accountable for trying to take away the savings of American consumers.”
The bill has been endorsed by the Community HealthCare Association of the Dakotas, Avera Health, 340B Health, America’s Essential Hospitals, Sanford Health, and the South Dakota Association of Healthcare Organizations.