340B Drug Pricing Program Contributes to Rising Healthcare Costs and Is Ripe for Reform
The U.S. House Energy & Commerce Committee's Health Subcommittee today will host the third hearing in its health care affordability series, specifically examining the role providers and hospitals play in shaping the cost of care for Americans.
While the hearing will likely examine numerous issues, there is none more ripe for reform than the flawed 340B drug pricing program.
Originally enacted to help eligible safety-net providers buy medicines at steep discounts and pass the savings on to lower-income and vulnerable patients, the program has ballooned as a revenue stream for many participating hospitals and contract pharmacy chains.
As the size and complexity of the 340B program has expanded, participating hospitals and contract pharmacies have instead used the program to increase…[more]
China's economy is struggling post-COVID-19. Growth is slower than expected, demographic trends are negative, youth unemployment is high, overbuilding has created a housing crisis and government indebtedness is ballooning. These are only a few of the symptoms ailing the country, and things could get worse. Did any of the Americans who not long ago wanted to implement some of China's top-down economic policies see this coming? Of course not. We've seen these pessimists make similar mistakes before.
Indeed, much of the economic narrative of the late 20th century was consumed by Japan's meteoric…
