New analysis finds 340B program growth continues to accelerate despite false claims

This week, Berkeley Research Group (BRG) released a new whitepaper pushing back on the highly misleading claim that sales under the USA’s Medicare Part B drugs purchased by hospitals through the 340B program are only 2% of annual US drug sales.

Citing a number of inconsistencies in the methodology used to calculate the false claim, the BRG recalculated the statistic and found that 340B drug purchases represented more than nearly four times the figure that is often referenced, according to a posting on the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America website by Nicole Longo, senior manager of public affairs at PhRMA.

To make a more accurate calculation, the whitepaper compares total gross 340B purchases to the total gross market for which 340B purchased drugs are eligible, rather than comparing apples to oranges by looking at net to gross. It also excludes drugs purchased for use in inpatient settings since 340B drugs are specifically for outpatient use. Roughly 45% of Medicare acute care hospitals participate in 340B.