Safety Net Hospital Group Defends Members' 340B Program Operations

The group Safety Net Hospitals for Pharmaceutical Access has released a July report "to set the record straight" after continued allegations of misuse of the 340B program for hospital profit. 

 

The 340B program was created in late 1992 as a vehicle for increasing the availability of pharmaceuticals to indigent patients. Under the program, eligible hospitals can acquire pharmaceuticals for distribution to vulnerable patient populations at lower prices. 

 

SHNPA insists that the 340B program has created opportunities for care for indigent patients nationwide and that the program is being used in the way that it was intended. The group cites independent research showing 340B's benefits as well as money savings calculations on local, state and federal levels. 

 

The organization says that it is willing to work with both supporters and critics of 340B and supports program reforms, including pricing transparency, audits of drug manufacturers and investigation of the use of contract pharmacies to meet 340B program goals. 

 

The report directly counters a white paper released by a collection of pharmaceutical and biotechnology associations earlier this year.