Stay tuned for more information about the 2021 Ryan White Clinics for 340B Access National Conference.

Conference Archives

2020 Ryan White Clinics for 340B Access National Conference

RWC-340B held its second national conference in Fort Lauderdale, Florida – the epicenter of the domestic AIDS epidemic – on January 6-7, 2020. We were especially honored that Jeanne White-Ginder, Ryan White’s mother, was our Keynote Speaker. Her remarks were a stirring reminder of the origins of the Ryan White law and why our clinics fight every day to end the epidemic. This gathering of the nation’s top HIV/AIDS focused providers featured local and national leaders who spoke about the unique challenges facing Ryan White clinics, sexually transmitted disease clinics, federally qualified health centers and other grantees and sub-grantees dedicated to caring for people living with HIV/AIDS.  Underscoring the entire conference is the fact that with 340B savings, Ryan White clinics are able to stretch their grant funds, offer a wider range of services, and improve the quality of care persons living with HIV/AIDS receive.

Key sessions included:  Regulatory and Legislative Update, Clinical Focus on STD & HIV/AIDS, Contract Pharmacy, Program Income, Discriminatory Reimbursement, Audits, and Peer-to-Peer Coaching.

2019 Ryan White Clinics for 340B Access National Conference

On August 1, 2019, RWC-340B and Cempa Community Care (“Cempa”) hosted the inaugural Ryan White Clinics for 340B Access National Conference in Chattanooga, Tennessee.  This day-long conference brought together local and national 340B advocates and experts to share best practices and discuss important 340B program administrative and regulatory updates.

The conference opened with short introductions from keynote speakers, including Chattanooga Mayor Andy Berke, Tennessee State Rep. Patsy Hazlewood, Ryan White clinic advocate Matthew Nevels, and was moderated by Shannon Stephenson, CEO of Cempa and President of RWC-340B.  Bill von Oehsen, one of the initial authors of the 340B statute, provided a brief overview of the 340B program and how the program has changed since it was implemented in 1992.  The conference then featured five different panel discussions, starting with a 340B program update from Principals at Powers, Pyles, Sutter & Verville, the nation’s leading 340B law firm.  This session provided attendees with a comprehensive update of the political, regulatory and judicial landscape related to 340B, including insider news and predictions about 340B actions within Congress, federal agencies, and the Administration.

Health care professionals from Cempa and CAN Community Health also participated on a panel, focusing specifically on best practices in the clinical setting.  The panelists shared real-life examples of how their Ryan White clinics use 340B savings to support the full continuum of care their patients need which, in turn, has enabled the clinics to suppress their patients’ viral loads and ultimately to stop the spread of the disease.  Panelists also discussed the unique and evolving challenges of caring for the HIV population and how Ryan White clinics have had to adopt creative strategies to meet the clinical, social, educational and financial needs of their patients.

The conference also featured panel sessions focused on specific policy topics such as 340B contract pharmacy compliance and program income, as well as third party payer and PBM discriminatory reimbursement practices and the different strategies available to Ryan White clinics for combating such practices.  Throughout the entire conference, panelists spoke about ongoing advocacy efforts to protect the 340B program, on both the state and federal level, and highlighted RWC-340B’s health care professional sign-on letter as an additional way that members and friends can show support for the 340B program.  The conference closed out with a round table discussion on program income and provided attendees the opportunity to ask the experts questions regarding what constitutes program income and the appropriate uses of program income.

The RWC-340B National Conference provided attendees with an invaluable opportunity to get together in one location to learn about the best practices being implemented in Ryan White clinics throughout the nation, as well as share their own success stories.

Key sessions included:  Regulatory and Legislative Update, Clinical Focus on STD & HIV/AIDS, Contract Pharmacy, Program Income and Discriminatory Reimbursement.