For three decades, hospitals and healthcare systems in the 340B Drug Pricing Program have operated with a common purpose: serve vulnerable communities and stretch scarce federal resources while managing rising costs.
But as scrutiny of the program has intensified, compliance oversight and proactive audit practices are now being coupled with communications that detail how savings are generated and reported to internal and external stakeholders.
At a featured session during Becker’s Spring Chief Pharmacy Officer Summit, health system leaders and an industry advisor examined what 340B stewardship looks like in practice — and what it takes for hospitals to be clear, credible and accountable. Prioritization of data visibility can help to translate how 340B savings support patient access to affordable medications and community health investments.
Panelists included:
• Katy Felice Lees, MSBA, director of 340B policy and business strategy, University of Rochester (N.Y.) Medical Center
• Jeremy Enger, PharmD, 340B program manager, Allina Health (Minneapolis)
• Madeline Wallack, PhD, MS, 340B ACE, founder and CEO, Rx|X Consulting
The discussion focused on how these covered entities can provide meaningful program information that serves the needs of patients, policymakers, and communities while maintaining operational integrity that builds program trust. Below are four key takeaways from the session.
Note: Quotes have been edited lightly for length and clarity.
1. The 340B story must go beyond compliance to demonstrate community impact
Both health system leaders offered concrete examples of how 340B savings translate into community services that extend far beyond pharmacy.
For the University of Rochester Medical Center, the program sustains a med-to-bed medication initiative, regional oncology infusion centers across 27 counties, transitional housing for discharged patients and comprehensive mental health and substance abuse programs. At Allina Health, 340B savings support program navigators, interpreter services, public benefits enrollment assistance and help with transportation and clothing for patients in need.
“340B is not a pharmacy program,” Dr. Enger said. “It’s a hospital program.”
2. Tailoring the message is as important as having one
Leaders agreed that effective 340B communication requires knowing your audience. Internally, staff at every level — pharmacists, nurses, providers — should understand what the program is and how it affects their work, even without needing the technical details. Externally, legislators and community stakeholders need concise, jargon-free narratives focused on mission and impact.
Dr. Wallack, whose firm offers 340B advisory services, recommended thinking beyond financial metrics and focusing instead on what she calls the “social ROI” of the program.
“It goes beyond just the, ‘here’s how much money’ — it’s more about how you convert those savings into the services that you’re providing,” Dr. Wallack said. She also cautioned against an overemphasis on individual patient stories, noting that 340B is an institutional program, and that conflating it with a patient-level benefit can muddy the message about its true purpose.
3. Proactive governance is the foundation of credible transparency
Both Dr. Enger and Ms. Lees described internal structures built to keep 340B visible across their organizations. At Allina Health, a quarterly 340B compliance committee brings together leaders from across the system, and a more recent bi-weekly meeting with hospital presidents ensures that potential compliance implications of operational changes are surfaced early.
“Before a lot of these meetings were happening, we would find out after the fact,” Dr. Enger said. “Now we’re asking the question up front.”
Ms. Lees echoed the importance of executive engagement, noting that 340B’s value “needs to be understood all the way up to the C-suite” and that leadership buy-in is what makes the story credible when it travels beyond the 340B team itself.
4. State transparency legislation is growing, and the metrics need to be shaped now
A growing number of states are enacting 340B transparency reporting requirements, but the panelists cautioned that poorly defined metrics can confuse as muchas they illuminate.
Dr. Enger described Minnesota’s requirement to report total 340B revenue as an example; because the figure reflects all revenue on 340B claims rather than the actual savings differential, some audiences might interpret the program’s impact to be more inflated than it is.
Dr. Wallack urged covered entities in states where legislation is still in progress to engage early and come prepared with alternatives. “If your state is talking about it but it’s not passed, I would really recommend discussing with peers where it is finalized,” she said.
The post Showing the work: How hospitals can build a credible 340B narrative appeared first on Becker's Hospital Review | Healthcare News & Analysis.
