AstraZeneca filed a lawsuit seeking to block an Arkansas law that requires the company to ship its medicines to any pharmacy working with hospitals participating in a controversial federal discount program. The move comes less than a month after a U.S. appeals court upheld the same law, but the company is trying to make a different argument in hopes of stopping other states from pursuing similar laws.
The drugmaker maintained the Arkansas law improperly forces pharmaceutical companies to supply pharmacies — such as CVS and Walgreens — that technically are not covered by the discount program, known as 340B, according to the lawsuit filed in a federal court. As a result, AstraZeneca argued the law is illegal because it is preempted by federal law and also violates the U.S. Constitution.
The lawsuit is the latest clash in a long-running battle over the 340B program, which was created to help hospitals and clinics care for low-income and rural patients. To ensure it achieves this goal, drugmakers that want to take part in Medicare or Medicaid must offer their medicines at a discount — typically, 25% to 50%, but sometimes higher — to participating hospitals and clinics.
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