More than $8.4 billion in expected annual contract savings for the hospital safety-net is at risk, according to a July 11 report from 340B Health.
As of July 3, 24 pharmaceutical companies had imposed restrictions and cuts on participants of the 340B drug pricing program. According to 340B Health, which advocates for 1,500 member hospital and health systems, restrictions and price increases the drugmakers continue to put in place could result in hospitals cutting programs and services as they seek to scrape savings where they can.
"As manufacturers push the envelope on restrictions as far as they legally can — and sometimes further — virtually no contract pharmacy savings will remain," 340B Health stated in its report.
For its analysis, 340B Health drew from a baseline volume of drugs purchased through the 340B program in 2020 and 2023 to assess the effects of drugmakers decisions on program participants.
Companies making the cuts, like the latest from Astellas Pharma US, argue that ceasing to distribute certain drugs to 340B pharmacies or raising the prices on them will "uphold the integrity of the 340B program and address the risk of duplicate discounts and diversion," it said in a letter.
However, 340B participants affected by the cuts and restrictions being put into place by the two dozen pharmaceutical companies say measures like these are withholding necessary resources — complicating things for hospitals and causing drug delays in some cases for patients in need.
In an effort to make them whole, CMS announced a proposal to pay $9 billion to hospitals that have been affected by the unlawful 340B restrictions.
Still, billions more could be at stake if other drugmakers continue to follow suit, according to the organization.