ADAP Advocacy has published two new infographics examining the relationship between the 340B Drug Pricing Program and medical debt in the United States. The infographics, part of the organization's "340B Too Big to Fail" advocacy campaign, reveal troubling disparities between the program's original intent and its current impact on patient finances. This analysis matters because it highlights systemic failures in a major federal healthcare program that affects millions of vulnerable Americans.
The first infographic, "340B Too Big to Fail – Medical Debt – Part 1," demonstrates how the 340B program was designed to help low-income patients access healthcare services. Despite the program growing to $66 billion in size, primarily benefiting hospitals, medical debt continues to burden many Americans. Most concerning is that the majority of this debt is owed to hospitals that qualify for 340B program participation. This contradiction between program expansion and patient financial hardship raises critical questions about program effectiveness and oversight.
The second infographic, "340B Too Big to Fail – Medical Debt – Part 2," documents how many 340B-participating hospitals employ aggressive, predatory debt collection practices that often damage consumer credit reports. These hospitals are choosing not to set reasonable prices or offer robust financial assistance programs, instead opting to sue patients rather than provide free charity care as required by law. This matters because it reveals how institutional practices within the healthcare system directly contribute to financial ruin for patients, undermining the very purpose of safety-net programs.
The infographic series is available for download at https://www.adapadvocacy.org/publications.html#i and serves as part of ADAP Advocacy's ongoing national campaign questioning whether the 340B Drug Pricing Program has become "too big to fail." The organization's findings suggest that while the program has expanded significantly, its benefits are not adequately reaching the patients it was designed to serve, resulting in continued financial hardship for vulnerable populations. This matters because it challenges assumptions about program success based solely on growth metrics rather than patient outcomes.
This publication comes at a critical time when medical debt remains a leading cause of bankruptcy in the United States, raising important questions about the accountability and oversight of federal healthcare programs. The infographics provide visual evidence of systemic issues within the 340B program that warrant further examination by policymakers and healthcare advocates. The implications extend beyond this specific program to broader questions about how healthcare financing systems can inadvertently perpetuate the very problems they were created to solve, making this research essential for informed policy discussions and potential reforms.
