A rural South Arkansas hospital joined a multi-state lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, asking a federal court to block upcoming changes to a prescription medication program.
The Dallas County Medical Center in Fordyce is a 25-bed critical access hospital and the county’s largest employer, and it serves patients regardless of their ability to pay for care, according to the complaint dated Wednesday by CEO David Mantz. Since 2010, the hospital has participated in the federal 340B program, which requires pharmaceutical companies that participate in Medicaid to sell outpatient drugs at discounted prices to clinics, community health centers and hospitals that primarily serve low-income patients.
340B saves the hospital $1.1 million annually, and the hospital cannot afford to pay for prescription drugs at market prices and maintain its current services, Mantz wrote in the complaint…