New 340B bill aims to shield rural hospitals from rebate pilot: 6 things to know

Reps. Jack Bergman, R-Mich., and Raul Ruiz, MD, D-Calif., introduced the Safety Net Provider Drug Pricing Protection Act Oct. 29, according to a Nov. 11 release from Rep. Bergman’s office.

Here are six things to know:

1. The bill, H.R. 10919, would prohibit 340B arrangements that require critical access hospitals, federally qualified health centers, sole community hospitals and other eligible entities to pay more than the 340B ceiling price at the time of purchase and then recover the difference through a rebate, reimbursement or other payment.

2. It builds on Rep. Bergman’s Community Health Center Drug Pricing Protection Act, H.R. 7391, which covers only federally qualified health centers. The new bill would extend the protection to a broader group of safety-net providers.

3. The release says the rebate model would force providers to buy drugs at full price and wait for reimbursement, creating financial and administrative burdens for smaller providers with limited reserves.

4. “The last thing they need is another Washington mandate forcing them to pay more upfront for prescription drugs and then wait to get their money back,” Rep. Bergman said. Rep. Ruiz called the bill “a critical first step to protect that lifeline, but there is more work to do.”

5. Supporters named in the release include Wausau, Wis.-based Aspirus Health, Escanaba, Mich.-based OSF St. Francis Hospital, Manistique, Mich.-based Schoolcraft Memorial Hospital, Kalkaska, Mich.-based Kalkaska Memorial Health Center, Munising, Mich.-based Munising Memorial Hospital, Newberry, Mich.-based Helen Newberry Joy Hospital, St. Ignace, Mich.-based Mackinac Straits Hospital, the Michigan Center for Rural Health, the National Association of Community Health Centers and other groups.

6. The bill joins a growing list of 340B proposals that would end or delay the rebate pilot. A separate House bill would delay it for two years, and the PROTECT 340B Act would terminate it. HRSA has approved 10 drugmakers to participate, and the American Hospital Association and others have sued to block it.