U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said hundreds of U.S. hospitals receive deep discounts on outpatient drugs under the rapidly growing federal program 340B, which requires drug manufacturers to cut prices to hospitals treating large numbers of low-income patients.
Grassley told The Charlotte Observer as part of his inquiry he found last year Duke University Hospital purchased $65.8 million in drugs via the discount program, which saved $48.3 million, but then sold the drugs to patients for $135.5 million, for a profit of $69.7 million.
Carolinas Medical Center has not yet answered Grassley’s questions about how much revenue it has generated from the 340B program.
Grassley said he sent a letter to Carolinas Medical Center giving it until Friday to provide its 340B revenue figures “to enable an accurate comparison” to those already provided by Duke and UNC Hospitals in Chapel Hill.
“These numbers paint a very stark picture of how hospitals are reaping sizable 340B discounts on drugs and then turning around and up-selling them to fully insured patients … in order to maximize their spread,” Grassley wrote in a letter last week to the administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration, the federal agency that oversees the drug program, the Observer reported.
The U.S. Congress set up the 340B program to offset the cost of treating Medicaid patients, but hospitals could buy discounted drugs for all outpatients, even those with private insurance, and Grassley said some hospitals might be increasingly using the program to make a profit.
Copyright 2013 United Press International, Inc. (UPI).
News Flash. Grassley (aka Grassley Farms) deflects criticism of sucking the farm subsidy system dry by pointing the naughty finger at hospitals and the pharm industry. He legally took millions from the Dept of Ag and along with his son and grandson is the richest land barron around New Hartford and surrounding counties.
Ya and that’s not welfare, only ADC moms are om welfare…lol
Breaking News! Grassley has just discovered feet at the end of his legs!
Actually, I don’t see how pharmacies make any money on some of the generic drugs they sell really cheaply. The drug companies may be making money on them, but the pharmacies aren’t. They only make money on the more expensive drugs.
Yes, the hospitals make money on cheap drugs, but there is a lot of record-keeping and labor that goes into getting an aspirin to a patient. All most people see is a 1 cent aspirin costing $5.00. Try seeing everything that goes on behind the scene to document that aspirin properly.
And just how much money are we wasting by tossing perfectly good drugs that are past their expiration date? It’s a scam, people. The FDA has never done the testing that shows how long a drug is still effective after its expiration date. They stick that date on there so we’ll throw everything away and buy new pills. Don’t do it!
http://northiowatoday.com/2012/10/09/many-drugs-are-just-fine-years-after-they-expire-study-finds/
Turn your old drugs into the police! OMG kids are going to get high on drugs! The sky is falling!
Bring your drugs to a police drop off box TODAY! It’s called trust. The police know what to do with those pesky drugs. Give all your drugs to them. Then go buy more fresh ones and keep the cycle going. It’s a business.
@B4B-you should really give the drug thing a rest. Everyone knows your feelings about the subject. When you do post about something different it is somewhat intelligent.
See who really makes money on welfare. Here, many of you guys think poor people cheat the system. What happens though is that providers end up milking the system, not the poor people. This hospital took the drugs it got cheap and made $70 million off them. They didn’t provide the drugs cheaply to patients like the government intended. It’s like this across the board.
Wow-boy is he bright. Hospitals have been cheating people on drug cost as long as I can remember. Look at your itemized bill after you get out of the hospital, but you had better be sitting down when you do. There is a huge difference even between hospitals. I bought some drugs from a hospital in Minnesota and then refilled the prescription here in Mason City. The exact same pills cost $20.00 more here. Same quantity, same brand name, just more money here.
another dementia moment LVS. That is the same guy you voted for. 5 times would be my guess.
@happy guy-another deranged post by the communist.
Everyone makes money on drugs! Especially the police. We the public make money on drugs as well. We take cig money from nicotine addicts, so we are all drug dealers and our drugs and very addictive and kill. But we still take the money.
GOOD BOY! Chucky. (nice little pat on head)
You have been in office how many years?
And now you JUST found out that $5.35 for one Tylenol tablet that the hospital charges to a patients bill shows they might be making a profit. What a watch dog for the public, GOOD BOY!