Section 330 of the Public Health Service Act (PHS Act)

Yes, Section 330 of the Public Health Service Act (PHS Act) includes provisions related to prescription drugs, specifically through requirements for health centers receiving grants under section 330(e) to make affordable access to life-saving medications like insulin and injectable epinephrine available to low-income patients. While Section 330 primarily establishes the Health Center Program, subsequent executive orders and proposed rules have extended its scope to address prescription drug access by conditioning federal grants on health centers passing on 340B Program discounts to patients. 

 

How Section 330 relates to prescription drugs:

• Authorization of Health Centers: The core purpose of Section 330 is to create and authorize the Health Center Program, which provides grant funding to eligible health centers. 
• Focus on Affordable Access: In recent years, directives and proposed rules have linked section 330(e) grants to the provision of affordable prescription drugs. 
• Specific Medications: Executive Order 13937, for example, directed the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make grants under section 330(e) conditional on health centers ensuring low-income patients could access insulin and injectable epinephrine at discounted 340B Program prices. 
• Patient Eligibility: These requirements target low-income individuals who either have no insurance or have high cost-sharing or high deductibles for these specific life-saving medications. 
• Mechanism for Access: By linking the grants to the 340B Program, the policy aims to pass on drug cost savings to patients who would otherwise not afford them.