AHA Backs SUSTAIN 340B Act, Seeks Changes to Key Provisions
The American Hospital Association sent an Oct. 27 letter supporting the bipartisan SUSTAIN 340B Act, introduced Aug. 5 by six senators, while asking sponsors to rework several provisions. AHA backs codifying the 340B program's purpose, ending the rebate model, protecting upfront discounts, creating a neutral clearinghouse, and barring manufacturer limits on contract pharmacies. It opposes letting manufacturers directly audit contract pharmacies, wants a clinical-relationship-based patient definition rather than a prescription-by-prescription test, and seeks removal of a three-year delay and ownership requirement for newly acquired child sites. AHA also flagged duplicative reporting requirements and implementation concerns with a financial assistance mandate for contract pharmacy dispensing. The bill is one of several competing 340B reform proposals in Congress.