Republicans query stakeholders on drug discount program

Three Republican senators and a House leader wrote to drugmakers and safety-net hospitals on Monday for a "detailed accounting" of how they operate the drug discount program for safety-net healthcare providers, which has significantly expanded over the past 10 years.

The so-called 340B program now covers more than 16,500 entities, according to a recent Government Accountability Office report, almost twice the number from a decade ago. Safety-net hospitals make up most of the newly covered entities.

In addition, a Health and Human Services Inspector General report last year raised questions of program integrity without proper federal oversight of taxpayer dollars, the letters' authors write.

"With the reliance on self-policing among participating manufacturers and covered entities and the increase in the number of new settings in which the program is offered, the risk of improper purchases or diversion of 340B drugs has significantly increased," the members write. "The problems identified by the GAO as it relates to the oversight responsibilities of each party and the expansion of the program need resolution."

The letters are signed by Rep. Joe Pitts (R-Pa.), chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Health subcommittee, and by Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Michael Enzi (R-Wyo.) and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah.).

---