January 29, 2015—U.S. hospitals provided $46.4 billion in uncompensated care in 2013, $500 million more than in 2012, the American Hospital Association reports. … [Read more...]
21st Century Cures Draft Bill Released
Measure would extend exclusivity for several categories of drugsJanuary 28, 2015—The Republican chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee yesterday released the first draft of legislation to spur the development of disease-curing drugs, but the lead Democrat on what is called the 21st Century Cures Initiative declined to endorse the discussion document. … [Read more...]
Hospitals to Congress: Shield 340B from Cutbacks
Don't scale back drug discount program to pay for Medicare doc fix, AHA saysJanuary 23, 2015—Congress should not scale back the 340B drug discount program in an effort to pay part of the multi-billion-dollar cost of Medicare physician payment reform, the American Hospital Association told a House subcommittee yesterday in written testimony. Hospitals have faced more than $121 billion in federal spending cuts since 2010 and "now is not the time to … [Read more...]
41 Percent of “Novel New” Drugs Are for Rare Diseases
FDA report highlights drugmakers' affinity for orphan drugsJanuary 22, 2015—The Food and Drug Administration approved 41 "novel new" drugs in 2014, of which 17 – a record high – were for orphan diseases or conditions, the federal agency says in a new report. … [Read more...]
Senators Reintroduce Drug Price Negotiation and Importation Bills
Both measures aim to reduce prescription drug costsJanuary 20, 2015—Lawmakers have reintroduced bills in the U.S. Senate to require the federal government to negotiate Medicare Part D drug prices and to let Americans import prescription drugs from Canada for personal use. … [Read more...]
What’s In Store for 340B in 2015 (Part 4)
Upcoming reports from the GAO and OIGThis is the final article in a series. January 16, 2015—The Government Accountability Office and the Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General is each issuing a report this year on 340B and Medicare – the GAO on how much Medicare spends reimbursing hospitals for 340B-discounted drugs, and the OIG on whether Medicare might save money if it could share in 340B … [Read more...]
What’s In Store for 340B in 2015 (Part 3)
Forthcoming guidance and regulationsThis is the third article in a series. January 14, 2015—There was a point last spring when the comprehensive 340B program regulation, aka the mega-reg, was barreling at full throttle toward the checkered flag. … [Read more...]