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340B In Action

340B Good Stewardship Program

Myrtue Medical Center has committed to the 340B Good Stewardship Program. During a time of increasing drug prices, the 340B drug pricing program is helping to ensure access to care for vulnerable patients and communities across the nation.

The good stewardship principles require the hospital to take several actions. First is communicating the value of the 340B program. Hospitals should publish a narrative on an annual basis that describes how they use 340B savings to benefit their community. This includes listing the services that the hospital could not continue to provide without 340B savings. Next, hospitals must disclose 340B estimated savings calculated in a standardized way. And finally, hospitals should continue to conduct internal reviews to ensure that their hospital 340B program meets HRSA rules and guidance. Included in this effort is a commitment to regular training for hospitals’ 340B teams.

Savings realized through participation in the 340B program supports Myrtue Medical Center’s ability to provide services to under and uninsured patients, regardless of their ability to pay, and to address health care needs in our communities. Myrtue Medical Center provides a variety of services to help care for the most vulnerable in the communities we serve.

Among these services are:

  • Home based services
  • Emergency services
  • Preventative care services
  • Disease prevention
  • Obstetrical services
  • Operation of Wellness Center
  • Behavioral Health services
  • Transportation to medical appointments
  • Telehealth services accessing:
    • Behavioral Health, Stroke, and Intensivist coverage
  • Self-administered drugs
  • Blood screening
  • Lunch and learn and other educational services to community

Scaling back the 340B program would threaten Myrtue Medical Center’s capacity to offer the services described above to our patients.

340B by the Numbers

June 1, 2019 through May 31, 2020:

Savings from 340B Program $2,500,000
Charity Care and Uninsured discounts $460,000
Bad Debts $1,200,000
Unreimbursed Medicaid Costs $1,100,000
Unreimbursed Medicare costs $550,000

What Is the 340B Drug Pricing Program?

The 340B program requires drug manufacturers to sell outpatient drugs at a discount to safety-net providers serving high numbers of low-income Medicare, Medicaid and Supplemental Security Insurance patients. Congress created the program to allow these providers to “stretch scarce federal resources as far as possible, reaching more eligible patients and providing more comprehensive services.”

Source: https://www.340bhealth.org/about/