May 9 House E&C Health Subcommittee hearing
On Thursday May 9, 2019 the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Health Subcommittee held a hearing on Lowering Prescription Drug Prices: Deconstructing the Drug Supply Chain. In the latter half…
Final Rule Will Require Drug Manufacturers to Disclose Prices in TV Advertisements
Earlier today, HHS issued a Final Rule that will require pharmaceutical manufacturers to disclose the wholesale acquisition cost (“WAC”) in direct-to-consumer TV advertisements for all Medicare and Medicaid covered drugs. …
Court Holds 2019 Reimbursement Cuts for 340B Drugs Unlawful; Remands to HHS for Remedy for 2018 and 2019
On May 6, 2019, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled that CMS acted outside its statutory authority in adopting an almost 30% reimbursement cut for Medicare…
340B Ceiling Price Website Update – HRSA to Publish Additional Pricing Data Elements
The Office of Pharmacy Affairs (OPA) recently published an update regarding the 340B ceiling price website. The update announces that HRSA will publish additional pricing data elements in the OPAIS…
HRSA Adopts New RSR Requirements to Include Data on Services Funded by Program Income
HRSA announced changes to the 2019 Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program Services Report (RSR) to require data on patients whose services are funded through Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program (RWHAP) program income…
Sentry Allowed to Continue Antitrust Lawsuit Against CVS and Wellpartner
Last week, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida held that Sentry Data Systems Inc. can proceed in an antitrust lawsuit against CVS Pharmacy, Inc., alleging that…
HRSA Launches 340B Ceiling Price Website
On April 1, 2019, HRSA launched its secure pricing component of the 340B OPAIS. This long overdue website allows safety-net providers access to a database of 340B ceiling prices. The…
Guidance on Purchase of Mobile Vans with Program Income
You will probably recall that Powers asked the HRSA HIV/HIV/AIDS Bureau (HAB) for guidance recently on whether Ryan White program income may be used to purchase mobile vans to be…
Trump Administration’s 2020 Budget Proposal – Significant Changes to 340B, Global HIV/AIDS Funding, and Medicare and Medicaid
The Trump administration’s fiscal year (FY) 2020 budget request, released on Monday, February 11, includes potentially harmful changes to the 340B program, increased funding for HIV/AIDS (although at the expense…
CDC Finds Rate of New HIV Infections has Stalled
A recent report from the CDC tracking HIV trends in the U.S. from 2010 to 2016 shows that after five years of dramatic decline, the number of annual HIV infections…