Report Finds 340B Hospitals Have Low Compliance with ACA Charity Care Requirements

WASHINGTON, D.C. (April 25, 2016) – The Alliance for Integrity and Reform of 340B (AIR340B) today released a new report from the Berkeley Research Group (BRG) examining hospitals’ compliance with the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) charity care requirements. The report, which expands on a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) last year, found large numbers of both 340B and non-340B hospitals not complying with key ACA protections for low-income patients. These protections include rules designed to ensure the lowest income patients are not charged excessive amounts for hospital care and are made aware of a hospital’s charity care program. The 340B hospitals included in this assessment generally did not have higher rates of compliance with these rules than other nonprofit hospitals despite 340B hospitals receiving additional financial benefits, totaling almost $4 billion in 2015, through access to discounted medicines.