2 More Pharmaceutical Groups Sue North Dakota Over New Law

(Photo by Mint Images/Getty Images via the North Dakota Monitor)

(North Dakota Monitor) – Three pharmaceutical groups have sued North Dakota in federal court over a new law that aims to stop pharmaceutical companies from limiting hospitals’ access to discount drugs.

The law, House Bill 1473, makes it a class B misdemeanor for manufacturers to adopt policies that “deny, restrict, prohibit, or otherwise interfere” with pharmacies’ ability to obtain and dispense medication on behalf of hospitals participating in a federal program for low-income Americans known as 340B.

The 340B program was created by Congress in 1992 to bring down health care costs for poor  communities. Under the program, drug companies offer discounted products to qualifying hospitals and other medical facilities. Drug manufacturers that are part of Medicaid must participate in 340B.

Some supporters of the 340B program feel federal law doesn’t go far enough to protect patients and hospitals’ access to discount drugs. Lawmakers introduced House Bill 1473 earlier this year to address these perceived shortcomings.