Urgent Action Needed: Act Now to Oppose Damaging 340B Amendments in HELP Committee - July 9, 2009

NAPH has learned that two members of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions have prepared a series of damaging amendments on the 340B drug discount program. The HELP committee's health care reform legislation, which is being marked up now, includes an extension of 340B drug discounts to the inpatient setting. The amendments being proposed by ranking Republican Mike Enzi (R-WY) and committee member Orrin Hatch (R-UT) would strip the 340B provisions in the bill, and in one case would repeal the 340B program altogether.

Please Contact Your Senators on HELP Now
The amendments of concern are: Enzi Amendments 281, 287, 288, 290 and 291 and Hatch Amendment 209. The amendments could be offered at any time. If you have Senators on the HELP Committee (see below), please ask them to protect safety net hospitals and oppose these amendments if and when they come up for a vote.

Key Talking Points
The 340B program enables my hospital to provide drugs to our patients at a reasonable price. Currently, we only receive discounts on outpatient drugs. The HELP bill would allow us to provide discounted drugs to patients in the inpatient setting.

Maintaining two separate inventories of pharmaceuticals—one for discounted outpatient drugs and one for non-discounted inpatient drugs – is inefficient.
Savings from extending the discount to inpatient pharmaceuticals will enhance the ability of safety net providers to ensure access to care for vulnerable patients.

The list of HELP Committee members is below:

Democrats
Edward Kennedy, MA, (Chair) – not present at the mark-up
Christopher Dodd, CT, (Acting Chair)
Tom Harkin, IA
Barbara Mikulski, MD
Jeff Bingaman, NM
Patty Murray, WA
Jack Reed, RI
Bernard Sanders, VT (Independent)
Sherrod Brown, OH
Robert Casey, PA
Kay Hagan, NC
Jeff Merkley, OR
Sheldon Whitehouse, RI

Republicans
Michael Enzi, WY (Ranking Republican)
Judd Gregg, NH
Lamar Alexander, TN
Richard Burr, NC
Johnny Isakson, GA
John McCain, AZ
Orrin Hatch, UT
Lisa Murkowski, AK
Tom Coburn, OK
Pat Roberts, KS