The most important fact missing from recent criticism of the federal 340B Drug Pricing Program is this: for the more than 1.9 million Texans served annually by community health centers, 340B helps keep health care and lifesaving medications within reach.
Claims that 340B drives up health care costs overlook the program's purpose and impact. Congress created 340B to help safety-net providers stretch scarce resources and serve more patients. For Texas community health centers, that mission is working exactly as intended.
Community health centers serve Texans who are uninsured, underinsured, enrolled in Medicaid, or struggling to afford basic necessities. We see firsthand how difficult it can be for families to choose between paying for medications, seeing a doctor, or putting food on the table. For many patients, 340B helps remove those barriers to care.
Unlike private health care systems, community health centers reinvest 340B savings directly into patient services. These resources help provide affordable medications, expand primary care, behavioral health, dental, and pharmacy services, and strengthen care coordination that keeps chronic conditions from becoming costly medical emergencies. The impact is especially important in rural and underserved communities, where health centers may be the primary source of care.
Texas employers are right to be concerned about rising health care costs, but 340B is not the cause. The primary drivers are well known: escalating prescription drug prices, workforce shortages, inflation, and growing demand for care. In fact, 340B helps offset those pressures by improving access to preventive care, increasing medication adherence, and reducing avoidable emergency room visits and hospitalizations.
Community health centers support transparency and accountability and welcome discussions about how 340B savings are used. The results are visible every day in the communities we serve: patients can afford medications, access care closer to home, and receive services that otherwise might not be available.
Weakening 340B would not lower health care costs or improve care. It would reduce access to affordable medications, create new barriers for rural families, and take critical resources away from community health centers serving working families, children, seniors, and veterans.
If policymakers are serious about lowering health care costs, they should focus on the true drivers of those costs, particularly skyrocketing prescription drug prices and barriers that prevent patients from receiving timely care. For the patients and communities who rely on safety-net providers, 340B is not a loophole or a cost driver. It is a lifeline.
Editor’s Note: The above guest column was penned by Jana Eubank, CEO of the Texas Association of Community Health Centers. It appears in the Rio Grande Guardian with the approval of the author. The column was penned in response to a recent column by Tony Bennett, president and CEO of the Texas Association of Manufacturers. His column was titled, Ripe for Reform: Is an Obscure Federal Program Driving Up Health Costs for Texas Employers and Families?
