Committee approves amended 340B reporting bill after hours of testimony from hospitals, FQHCs and industry groups

The House Public Health Committee on Wednesday advanced an amended version of Senate Bill 118, a measure that would require greater reporting about covered entities’ participation in the federal 340B drug pricing program. The committee voted to pass the bill as amended by voice and roll call, 11-0.

The bill’s supporters and neutral testifiers — including hospital systems, community health centers and pharmacy associations — told the committee they support transparency but asked the lawmakers to protect the operations of federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) and other small safety-net providers. Dawn Moore, vice president and chief pharmacy officer at Community Health Network, testified on behalf of the Indiana Hospital Association and Indiana Pharmacy Association and said, “We are neutral on Senate Bill 118,” and that the accepted amendments carve out HRSA grantees and many FQHCs from parts of the reporting language.

Nut Graf: Committee members said their goal is transparency about how 340B savings are generated and used; stakeholders said the program is widely used to support under‑reimbursed services and urged careful drafting so that reporting does not unintentionally reduce patient access through contract pharmacy arrangements.

Supporters described the 340B program as a financing tool for safety‑net providers. Andrew Gonzalez, a pharmacist at Health Net and member of the Indiana Pharmacy Association, said the program “is not a direct to patient discount program” and described how savings returned to a covered entity are reinvested in services for patients. Sam Lewis, pharmacy business manager for Eskenazi Health, said Eskenazi’s outpatient pharmacies dispensed more than 1,000,000 prescriptions in 2024 and realized “over $68,000,000 in savings” versus wholesale cost, saying, “Without this program, we wouldn’t be able to do what we do on a daily basis.”

Several testifiers, including Kristen Jones of the Indiana Life Sciences Association, urged stronger oversight and clearer accounting of how discounts are used. Jones said oversight had been “lax” and that evidence shows some large hospital networks and third‑party actors disproportionately benefit. Health centers and community clinics emphasized different operating models: Alan Wicci of Damien Center said his clinic maintains an on‑site pharmacy and prices patient prescriptions on a sliding scale, while Braxton Davis of Health Link Community Health Centers and Ben Harvey of the Indiana Primary Health Care Association said transparency for covered entities is important to ensure program intent is honored.

Committee discussion and amendments: Committee leaders said they were trying to balance transparency with protection for small community providers. The chair introduced several amendments at the start of the hearing; amendment 7 narrowed coverage to exclude certain small clinics and HRSA grantees, and amendment 6 adjusted technical reporting language for pharmacies. The committee adopted both amendments by consent before taking final action.

The committee recorded a roll‑call after a motion to advance the bill. Representative Shackleford, Representative Bauer, Representative Porter, Representative McGuire, Representative Carball (yes), Representative Goss Reeves, Representative Hostetler, Representative Issa, Representative King, Representative Ledbetter and Representative Barrett voted yes; two members were listed as excused. The clerk announced the bill passed the committee by a tally of 11 to 0.

What remains: Testimony repeatedly urged the legislature to add contract‑pharmacy protections to reporting requirements so manufacturers cannot deny shipments to contracted pharmacies that serve covered entities — an issue several witnesses said has been addressed in other states’ bills this session. Committee members and stakeholders said they expect continued drafting as the bill moves through the process.

Ending: Committee members closed the 340B portion of the hearing and moved on to other bills on the agenda. The committee record shows the amended bill advanced; the sponsor and stakeholders said they will continue to work on language to preserve access through contract pharmacies while improving transparency.