Providers Urge Post-budget Passage of A.6222/S.1913: Stop Big Pharma & Pharmacy Middlemen from Squeezing Resources out of Patient Care
ALBANY, N.Y. — With less than one week left in the current legislative session, today safety net providers from across New York State urged their elected leaders to protect the federal 340B Drug Pricing Program and pass the 340B Prescription Drug Anti-Discrimination Act (A.6222/S.1913), a critical patient protection bill that would help preserve access to care at no cost to taxpayers.
The 340B program allows community health centers, Ryan White providers, safety-net hospitals and other providers serving Medicaid patients and low-income communities to purchase certain medicines at a discount and reinvest the savings directly into patient care. For these safety net providers, the program is essential to maintaining care in both urban and rural communities, particularly for patients who already face barriers related to cost, transportation, chronic illness, housing instability and lack of insurance.
The 340B Prescription Drug Anti-Discrimination Act would stop pharmaceutical manufacturers and pharmacy benefit managers from discriminating against 340B providers through extra restrictions, payment cuts or other burdens tied to participation in the program. The bill would also protect the ability of community health centers and hospitals to use local contract pharmacies and give the state Department of Health authority to enforce the law and hold violators accountable.
“The 340B program allows safety-net providers to provide healthcare and supportive services to vulnerable patients with significant needs,” said Jason Barnecut-Kearns, President and CEO of Trillium Health. “However, large pharmaceutical companies are undermining the program, pulling critical resources away from health centers and the communities they serve. The 340B Prescription Drug Anti-Discrimination Act is a practical solution that would protect essential services at a time when safety-net providers are already facing significant financial strain. We are urging the legislature to pass A.6222/S.1913 before the end of session.”
“One of the few tools community health centers have to stretch limited resources for patients is 340B. As the legislative session continues, CHCANYS urges lawmakers to build on the progress we have made by passing the 340B Prescription Drug Anti-Discrimination Act to protect the 340B program,” said Rose Duhan, CHCANYS President & CEO. “This no-cost legislation is urgently needed to preserve resources that health centers use to make care affordable for all New Yorkers, support services that are not fully reimbursed, and care for patients who might otherwise go without. Health centers are operating in crisis mode. Protecting 340B is a no-cost, common-sense step lawmakers can take now to further safeguard access to care in communities across New York.”
"We call on our state legislature to protect the federal 340B Drug Pricing Program and pass the 340B Prescription Drug Anti-Discrimination Act (A.6222/S.1913) in the current legislative session," said Sharen Duke, Executive Director and CEO of Alliance for Positive Change. “Ryan White providers, like Alliance for Positive Change, rely on 340B savings to expand access to no-cost and low-cost HIV medications, food and nutrition programs, patient transportation, and treatment adherence support. This important legislation will curb administrative roadblocks, contract pharmacy restrictions, and other discriminatory practices, so that community-based 340B providers can continue to reinvest in patient care and expand access to life-saving services.”
“We want everyone to be able to achieve their highest level of health and wellbeing. If we don’t protect 340B, that’s adding another barrier to achieving that goal. It will make it more difficult for many people to get the medications they need,” said Neighborhood Health Center President & CEO Joanne Haefner.
“On behalf of Urban Health Plan, one of the largest federally qualified health centers in NYS, we strongly support the passage of A6222/S1913, the 340B Prescription Drug Anti-Discrimination Act. The 340b program helps us fund medications for the uninsured, fund the use of clinical pharmacists who are vital for the care of patients with chronic diseases, and helps to fund numerous other critical programs that would not be funded elsewhere,” said Paloma Hernandez, President & CEO of Urban Health Plan. “Without our local pharmacies and their partnerships with providers like us, there would be minimal access to medications in many of the communities that safety net providers serve. Help save our 340b programs, they are vital to the well-being of our patients.”
“The savings generated through the 340b medication discount program allows us to provide comprehensive care for our patients, and funds programs critical to their ability to manage chronic illnesses,” said Dr. Frederick Johnson, Interim President and CEO of Anthony L. Jordan Health. “Funding generated from the 340b program may not be a life or death situation for big pharma, but it could be for many of our patients who already are forced to make tough decisions when it comes to the costs of their care and their basic necessities.”
“340B is not a loophole. It is a lifeline for patients and communities that already face too many barriers to care,” said Dave Jolly, President & CEO of Cornerstone Family Healthcare. “For safety net providers, these savings are not sitting on a balance sheet. They are being turned into primary care visits, behavioral health services, dental care, pharmacy access, care coordination, transportation support and other services that keep people healthy. When Big Pharma and pharmacy middlemen restrict 340B, they are not protecting program integrity. They are pulling resources directly out of local patient care. Albany should pass A.6222/S.1913 and make clear that patient care comes before corporate profits.”
“As a Ryan White 340B Entity, the Albany Damien Center uses 340B to provide housing, food/meals, transportation, mental health counseling, and treatment adherence supports for very low-income persons living with HIV,” said Perry James Junjulas, Albany Damien Center Executive Director and PLWA. “340B helps us save lives every day. The majority of persons served by the Center are from the LGBT community and from communities of color; populations who continue to be disproportionately impacted the siphoning of resources by big Pharma. Thus, we highly support the 340B Prescription Drug Anti-Discrimination Act to keep resources in NYS and in the communities who need them the most.”
“At Jericho Road, our vision is for individuals, families, and communities to become healthy and whole. Protecting 340B works to protect our communities. It enables us to provide affordable medications, holistic care, and ultimately, a piece of the health equity our patients deserve. New York State has the opportunity to stand in the gap for our neighbors, and we urge them to do so,” said Dr. Allana Krolikowski, CEO of Jericho Road Community Health Center.
“Savings from the 340b program allow us to provide care for or rural communities - especially more costly services like Obstetrics and Dental Care - where reimbursement does not cover what it costs us to provide that care,” said Brett Lawton, Universal Primary Care CEO. “The 340b drug discount program is a lifeline for Universal Primary Care - without it we’d have to scale back services and potentially close sites that serve our rural communities in Cattaraugus and Allegany Counties.”
“Simply telling someone to go to the doctor is not enough when they are choosing between rent and groceries, struggling to get to an appointment or managing a chronic illness without stable support,” said Mike Lee, chief operating officer of Evergreen Health. “340B helps community health centers like Evergreen reinvest savings into care coordination, mental health services, nutrition support, transportation, housing, food pantry services and outreach that keep people connected to care. Albany should pass A.6222/S.1913 to protect 340B, stop Big Pharma and pharmacy middlemen from squeezing providers, and defend the support system our patients rely on.”
“The 340B program is a critical lifeline for community health centers, enabling us to stretch limited resources and expand access to care for underserved communities. Ongoing restrictions on contract pharmacies threaten our ability to reinvest these savings into essential services, including care for uninsured and medically vulnerable patients,” said Lauren Mendenhall, Executive Director, La Casa De Salud. “We urge state leaders to pass A6222/S1913 before this session ends, protecting the 340B program and ensuring community health centers can continue to provide high-quality, accessible care to the patients who rely on us every day.”
“Harmony Healthcare Long Island supports the 340B Prescription Drug Anti-Discrimination Act. We use the 340B program to provide free or low-cost medication to thousands of our patients,” said David Nemiroff, LCSW, Harmony Healthcare Long Island President & CEO. “340B proceeds are used to support our 23% uninsured patients who have nowhere else to turn when it comes to care and medication. We are calling on the legislature to partner with us to care for our community and support some of our most vulnerable neighbors at no cost to New York taxpayers.”
“340B revenue strengthens community health centers by turning limited resources into expanded access, affordable medications, and better care for the patients who need it most,” said Kim Osborne, BSN, MBA, President & CEO of Family Health Network.
“For safety-net providers, the 340B program is critical to sustaining access to care in rural communities where patients already face significant barriers,” said Tricia Peter-Clark, President and CEO of ConnextCare. “Through 340B, we are able to support comprehensive services, including primary care, mental health, dental services, pharmacy access, and school-based health centers that serve students across six school districts in Oswego County. Passage of A.6222/S.1913 is essential to protecting these resources and ensuring that underserved patients, including children and families, can continue to receive high-quality, coordinated care close to home.”
“Ryan Health strongly urges the legislature to pass and the Governor to sign the 340B Prescription Drug Anti-Discrimination Act,” said Daniel Pichinson, MBA, President and CEO of Ryan Health. “As Big Pharma places limitations on the 340B program, our patients are losing access to the medications they need to get healthy. We place patients, not profits, at the center of everything we do. Let’s get this legislation passed now to improve the health of the communities we all serve.”
"For people experiencing homelessness, access to medication can mean the difference between stability and crisis. The savings generated through the 340B program allow us to reinvest directly into patient care, expand access to lifesaving treatment, and support individuals managing complex chronic health conditions. The 340B Prescription Drug Anti-Discrimination Act is critical to protecting these resources and ensuring healthcare providers can continue delivering care to our most vulnerable residents,” said Jonathan Santos-Ramos, Executive Director, Care For the Homeless.
“When the 340B program is weakened, patients are the ones who feel it—through delayed care, fewer options and added barriers to staying healthy,” said Tucker Slingerland, M.D., CEO of Hudson Headwaters Health Network. “Passing this legislation is about protecting patients’ ability to get the care they need, when and where they need it.”
“The proposed legislation improves the health of New Yorkers, conserves taxpayer resources, and requires no state spending to implement,” said Christine Smoot Lowers, CEO of Hometown Health Centers in Schenectady. “By keeping medications affordable and accessible, 340B helps people stay well and avoid unnecessary emergency room visits—benefiting both taxpayers and patient outcomes. It’s practical, common-sense legislation.”
“Regardless of what Big Pharma might say, 340B is not a windfall to safety net providers. It is a decades-old federal program designed to help safety-net providers serve more patients and provide more comprehensive care at no cost to taxpayers,” said Judith Watson, RN, BSN, MPH, HD, Westchester Community Health Center CEO & CHCANYS Board Chair. “The state budget may be finished, but the work of protecting access to care is not. Before the legislative session ends, lawmakers have an opportunity to stand with patients, protect safety-net providers, and ensure that 340B savings continue to support care in communities across New York by passing the 340B Prescription Drug Anti-Discrimination Act.”
Big Pharma and pharmacy middlemen are working to undermine 340B through restrictions, payment cuts and administrative roadblocks that drain resources away from patient care. For providers, 340B savings help sustain services that patients depend on every day, including primary care, behavioral health, dental care, pharmacy access, care coordination, transportation assistance and other supports that keep people connected to treatment.
While community providers stretch every available dollar to keep services in place, the pharmaceutical industry continues to spend enormous sums protecting its profits. In 2022, the top five drug companies reported $81.9 billion in combined earnings, and pharmaceutical-sector federal lobbying reached a reported $452 million in 2025. Big Pharma’s attacks on 340B are not about program integrity; they are about protecting corporate profits by limiting savings that Congress intended to support care for vulnerable patients.
For many patients, contract pharmacies are how they actually get their medicine. In New York, more than 90% of community health centers rely on contract pharmacies and partner with an average of 16 to 20 pharmacies to reach patients where they live. When drug companies restrict those relationships, providers said, patients are forced to travel farther, wait longer or risk going without medication and care.
About 340B
Created by Congress in 1992, the federal 340B Drug Pricing Program allows eligible safety-net providers to purchase certain outpatient medications at a discount and reinvest the savings into patient care. In New York, 340B supports community health centers, Ryan White providers, safety-net hospitals and other providers that serve Medicaid patients, uninsured patients and low-income communities.