Advocacy Campaign Questions 340B Program Effectiveness as Charity Care Declines
TL;DR
ADAP Advocacy's campaign exposes how hospitals profit from 340B drug discounts instead of providing charity care, creating an opportunity to advocate for reform and accountability.
The 340B Program requires drug manufacturers to offer discounted medications to eligible hospitals, which are then supposed to use the savings to provide charity care to low-income patients.
Reforming the 340B Program could ensure hospitals use drug discounts to provide charity care, improving healthcare access for low-income and minority communities.
ADAP Advocacy's commercial reveals that 69% of 340B hospitals offer below-average charity care despite receiving drug discounts intended for patient assistance.
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ADAP Advocacy has launched a national advocacy campaign questioning whether the 340B Drug Pricing Program has become "too big to fail" as data shows declining charity care among participating hospitals. The campaign, which includes a television commercial airing through the end of the year, highlights how hospitals receiving discounted medications through the program are providing less free care to low-income patients than expected. Brandon M. Macsata, CEO of ADAP Advocacy, stated that a hallmark of the modern-day 340B Program is its design for hospitals to provide free care and financial aid to poor patients, also known as charity care. He explained that drug manufacturers offer medications to hospitals at reduced rates so that they, in turn, can serve more low-income patients—but that isn't happening because these hospital systems are pocketing the money.
Recent data indicates that 69% of 340B disproportionate share hospitals offer charity care at rates below the national average. This trend has raised concerns about whether the program is fulfilling its original mission of expanding healthcare access for vulnerable populations. The advocacy group's interactive map visually demonstrates these concerning patterns across hospital systems nationwide. The campaign addresses multiple issues beyond declining charity care, including rising healthcare executive compensation and increasing patient medical debt. The commercial specifically questions whether the 340B program has grown so large that it cannot be effectively reformed, despite evidence that it may not be serving its intended purpose. The video is available for viewing online at https://youtu.be/7uqGTHT7Zx4.
ADAP Advocacy's 340B Project focuses on how these trends disproportionately impact minority communities, who often rely on safety-net hospitals participating in the drug discount program. The organization argues that the gap between discounted drug acquisition and actual charity care provision represents a systemic failure that requires immediate attention from policymakers and healthcare administrators. The advocacy effort comes amid growing scrutiny of the 340B program, which was created in 1992 to help safety-net providers stretch scarce resources. While the program has expanded significantly in recent years, questions about oversight and accountability have increased correspondingly. ADAP Advocacy's campaign aims to bring these concerns to public attention and prompt meaningful reforms to ensure the program benefits the patients it was designed to serve. The implications of this announcement are significant for healthcare policy, as they challenge the fundamental effectiveness of a program intended to support vulnerable populations through discounted medications.
Curated from 24-7 Press Release
