A group of hospital associations filed a lawsuit accusing the Department of Health and Human Services of failing to prevent a half dozen large drug makers from curtailing the discounts they offer through a federal program for safety-net hospitals.
At issue is the 340B drug discount program, which was created in 1992 and requires drug makers to offer discounts that are typically estimated to be 25% to 50% — but could be much higher — on all outpatient drugs to hospitals and clinics that serve low-income populations. There are approximately 12,400 so-called covered entities, including 2,500 hospitals, participating in the program.
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