The Washington Post’s Editorial Board recently published a piece about 340B, entitled “How corporate welfare for hospitals is raising health care costs.” The piece mentions only hospitals; it makes no mention of CHCs or any other grantees. Nonetheless, it is certain to have negative spill-over effects on the program more broadly. In its piece, the Editorial Board:
- Calls 340B “corporate welfare” and a “special break” for hospitals.
- States that 340B raises total healthcare costs, including for government programs.
- Includes charts showing dramatic growth in 340B purchases and contract pharmacy arrangements.
- States that 340B creates “distortionary effects” such as leading providers to order more expensive drugs and fueling consolidation within the industry.
The article concludes that:
- “Instead of serving as a safety net for hospitals in vulnerable communities, the program has become a profit-making venture for big businesses.”
- Hospitals “have become addicted to these taxpayer-subsidized profit streams.”
- “Once a business gets accustomed to handouts, it becomes extremely difficult to take them away. But it’s a fight worth having.”
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