Major Program To Increase Access To Medications For People Living With HIV/AIDS Under Attack

340B drug discount program

Most people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) probably have never heard of the federal 340B drug discount program but there's a good chance it has helped save their lives. The program allows Ryan White-funded clinics, state AIDS Drug Assistance Programs, and a long list of other safety-net hospitals and healthcare providers to buy outpatient prescription drugs at a discount. In turn, the "safety net providers" pass on the price break to patients in need and also use savings from the program to fund vital clinical services. HIV antiretrovirals are among the top medicines purchased through the program.

A House health subcommittee is holding a hearing today about the 340B program. The Black AIDS Institute submitted a letter for the hearing record expressing concern about the harm that would come from cutting back or ending this critically important program. If the program were cut back or eliminated, hospitals and HIV/AIDS clinics would be forced to limit drug discounts and services. Some would likely close altogether.

With so much at stake, it's important to understand 340B is not a taxpayer-funded program. It's also not a big expense for the Pharmaceutical industry. At $7.5 billion per year, 340B represents just 2 percent of the $330 billion U.S. drug market. Pfizer cleared $22.0 billion in 2013, Johnson & Johnson $13.8 billion, Roche $12.0 billion, Novartis $9.2 billion, and GlaxoSmithKline $8.5 billion. Their margins (profits as a percentage of sales) are huge: Pfizer 41.8 percent, Johnson & Johnson 19 percent, Roche 23.8 percent, Novartis 16 percent, and GlaxoSmithKline 21 percent.

These companies aren't suffering financially; they can afford to give HIV/AIDS clinics and other safety-net providers a break. The 340B program is not preventing pharmaceutical companies from developing new drugs. But, cutting or eliminating this program will do serious harm to healthcare providers whose mission is to be there for people living with HIV/AIDS when they are sick and no one else will help.

To learn more about the 340B program go to www.340BFacts.com.