PRESS RELEASE – May 15, 2024
The federal 340B Program stretches the limited federal resources given to non-profit healthcare providers without raising taxes.
This spring, CV340B set out to tell the truth about 340B and defend the program from ongoing attacks by the drug industry. We started digital ad campaigns in Virginia and West Virginia, encouraging residents to ask their policymakers to #Defend340B! Big Pharma wants to shrink the program, which helps the most medically vulnerable in the community access affordable healthcare, which would ultimately dump the burden of care onto taxpayers.
The results were significant: We reached nearly 21,000 individuals in Virginia and drove almost 5,000 clicks to an educational landing page. In West Virginia, we reached nearly 8,000 and drove over 600 clicks. Once on our site, individuals learned more about the 340B program and took action by sending a message to their state policymakers.
Healthcare providers use the savings from the 340B Program to provide affordable healthcare to underserved communities nationwide. The 340B Drug Discount Program requires drug companies to provide drugs at a discounted price to certain types of non-profit hospitals and clinics, which, in turn, use their 340B savings to underwrite the cost of serving patients in their communities. Without 340B, the cost of providing this affordable public healthcare would fall on the taxpayer.
Unfortunately, over thirty drug companies unlawfully restrict healthcare providers’ access to the 340B discount, redirecting the savings into big pharma’s back pocket.
Building on the momentum of the Virginia and West Virginia campaigns, we launched a targeted national campaign. The campaign is ongoing, and so far, we’ve reached nearly 49,000 individuals and drove over 6,000 clicks to our site, proving that the public is interested in defending 340B and is ready to take action.
Join us today to take action in your state.
FAQs
What is 340B?
First established in 1992 through bipartisan legislation, the federal 340B drug discount program operates on the simple principle of requiring drug companies to provide drugs at a discounted price to certain types of non-profit hospitals and clinics that, in turn, use their 340B savings to provide affordable healthcare in their communities. That reinvestment in patients and communities without taxpayer dollars has made the 340B program successful. 340B providers can benefit their communities more with their limited dollars.
For over 30 years, the 340B program has consistently helped safety net providers meet their communities’ unique public health needs. Congress has acted several times to extend program eligibility to additional categories of hospitals. However, despite affecting just two percent of all drug sales in the United States, the program remains deeply unpopular within the drug industry.
How can we protect 340B together?
Without a significant and sustained effort to raise public awareness of the 340B program’s benefits, the program faces an uncertain future. Providers and their healthcare industry supporters have fought to defend the 340B program, recognizing its value in providing patients with affordable care, but they need YOUR help. Send a message to your policymaker today asking them to #Defend340B!
About Community Voices for 340B:
Community Voices for 340B (CV340B) is a nonprofit dedicated to educating the public about the importance of the 340B program and leading the collective action needed to give a voice to the program’s real beneficiaries. We are a grassroots organization that enables community members to tell their side of the story: why 340B is vital to them and why a sustained and vibrant 340B program is essential to ensuring healthcare access among the neediest. Learn more about CV340B.
