Sample 340B Advocacy Letter – May 2023
Dear Senator or Representative (Insert Name)
Community Health Centers like HealthNet have partnered with Congress for over 50 years to strengthen communities and provide care for all Americans regardless of their ability to pay. A critical component supporting that care has been the 340B program, which provides flexible resources to meet the unique needs of communities and patients. Yet, HealthNet’s access to the program at its partner contract pharmacies is threatened, and the situation is urgent for health centers. I urge you to take up comprehensive reforms to stabilize the program.
Established over 30 years ago, the 340B program enables safety-net providers like HealthNet to “stretch scarce federal resources as far as possible, reaching more eligible patients, and providing more comprehensive services.” Community Health Centers have been recognized as model stewards within the program. Unlike others, health centers must reinvest all 340B savings into patient care by law and regulation. Ninety percent of health center patients are 200% or below the federal poverty level, and health centers are required to serve all patients, regardless of their ability to pay. These savings often fund services and staff to help close gaps in care, such as pharmacists and dental and behavioral health providers.
Through its 10 community health centers across Marion, Morgan and Monroe counties, HealthNet provides comprehensive primary care and support services for more than 60,000 patients each year – the majority of whom live below the federal poverty level. At HealthNet, 340B directly supports:
- No-charge face-to-face, telephone, and video Clinical Pharmacist services;
- Maintenance of HealthNet’s Eligible Patient Prescription Assistance (EPPA) program, which offers direct-to-patient medication discounts for all uninsured patients under 200% of the Federal Poverty Level;
- Access to other medication assistance programs;
- No-charge medical care and medications for homeless clients; and
- Supplies of school nurse office medications to various public schools.
Other currently provided and critically-needed HealthNet services would lack adequate funding without 340B support, including nutrition, diabetes and other health education services, social work services, community outreach, interpretation services, and much more.
Recent actions and litigation have shown that there is a significant need to shore up the program to ensure continued access for health centers and their patients. For example, health centers are navigating contract pharmacy restrictions from nine drug manufacturers. These restrictions jeopardize care because nearly 90% of health centers use contract pharmacies to extend access to 340B drugs to their patients across their service area. HealthNet’s contract pharmacies are crucial to “reach more eligible patients with more comprehensive services” via the 340B program. Health centers need bipartisan legislation that will build the necessary accountability and transparency to bring all 340B stakeholders to the table.
Health centers like HealthNet need a permanent solution to stabilize and protect the 340B program. We hope all 340B stakeholders will come to the table to ensure access for true safety-net providers.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
(Your name)