In accordance with the presidential regulatory freeze issued earlier this year, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) proposes to further delay until July 20 a final rule requiring federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) to charge certain low-income patients no more than the 340B Drug Pricing Program price for insulin and injectable epinephrine.
The final rule, scheduled to go into effect on Jan. 22, was first delayed until March 22.
In this latest delay proposal, HHS notes it will use the additional time to review concerns about the rule, including:
- the impact of the rule’s administrative requirements;
- costs of new processes and procedures that would be necessary under the rule;
- the effect of establishing a new income eligibility threshold for health center operations; and
- the overall impact on care delivery and service levels for health center patients.
Contact Senior Director of Policy Erin O’Malley at eomalley@essentialhospitals.org or 202.585.0127 with questions.
