On Wednesday, September 28, US District Court Judge Rudolph Contreras ruled that the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) must cease reimbursement cuts to outpatient 340B drugs immediately. This comes on the heels of the Supreme Court’s June 2022 ruling that deemed the reimbursement cuts unlawful. The decision is seen as a win for hospitals that will no longer incur the nearly 30% cuts, which otherwise would have remained in effect through the end of the year under the Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS).
As hospitals continue to struggle with rising operating expenses, the decision will offer respite to organizations serving vulnerable and resource-intensive patient populations. However, while the decision will be counted as a victory for 340B hospitals and advocacy groups, the extent to which hospitals will receive repayments for the lost reimbursement incurred since 2018 remains an open question.
At this time, CMS has yet to release an announcement regarding its plans to revise payment rates for the balance of calendar year 2022.
