AHA has filed a legal brief in support of a Colorado law that ensures 340B discounted drugs can be delivered to contract pharmacies.
The brief comes amid a lawsuit brought by drugmaker AbbVie, which argues that Colorado’s law is preempted by federal law and constitutes an unconstitutional taking of property, according to legal documents reviewed by Becker’s.
In its filing with the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado, the AHA argues that the state acted within its traditional authority to protect public health and fill the gap left by the federal 340B statute.
AbbVie, which has argued in other cases that federal law did not address delivery, now claims that Colorado’s statute intrudes on federal authority. The brief filed by the AHA asserts that the law does not regulate pricing but aligns with the original intent of the 340B program, which is to support hospitals serving vulnerable populations.
This is one of several briefs filed by the American Hospital Association in defense of 340B laws. Also in July, the AHA and three other healthcare organizations filed an amicus brief in defense of Tennessee’s 340B law.
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