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While not yet in the limelight of healthcare discussions, and totally unknown to most people, the federal 340B drug discount program affects many vulnerable patients in Southwestern Illinois. Created in 1992 to help vulnerable or uninsured patients afford valuable medications by providing certain hospitals and safety net clinics with discounted medicine, the 340B program is no longer functioning as intended.

Drug Discount Program Needs Reform

Too often government programs start with a noble goal but are soon denigrated by special interests groups who use well intentioned programs for their own gain. Unfortunately, this has happened with the 340B drug discount program. Due to limited oversight, bad actors have been able to profit from this federal program, abusing the system and hurting the exact people the program was intended to help.

There are many reasons why the cost of health care is rising, including massive and unchecked federal programs that have proliferated throughout the entire health-care system. The 340B drug discount program is among those that must be examined and reined in.

As government grows, so does abuse and cronyism. The 340B drug-pricing program is a textbook example of how insiders, lobbyists, and influence-peddlers high-jacked an obscure provision of law and turned it into a profit-making racket. Now that the Trump administration is trying to reform the program, the K-Street set is coming out in force to defend it.

The Seattle Times recently wrote on a report conducted by Columbia Legal Services (CLS) that found a record number of hospitals are withholding charity care throughout the state of Washington. 27 of the hospitals referenced are 340B Drug Discount Program covered entities, a program which was designed to help certain health care safety-net providers that serve uninsured or otherwise vulnerable patients reduce outpatient prescription drug costs, giving entities the ability to increase uncompensated and charity care in their local communities.

Drug Discount Program Not Serving Patients Favorably