Powers Principals William van Oehsen, Peggy Tighe, and Barbara Straub Williams, and Powers Associate Shuchi Parikh spoke at the first-ever Ryan White Clinics (RWC) 340B National Conference in Chattanooga, Tennessee on August 1st.
Hosted by Ryan White Clinics for 340B Access (RWC-340B) and Cempa Community Care, the day-long conference brought together national and local 340B advocates and experts to share best practices and regulatory updates on the 340B program.
Bill von Oehsen gave a keynote address to begin the conference, providing an overview of the 340B program. Bill, Peggy, and Barbara then participated in a panel on legislative, regulatory, and judicial updates related to 340B issues. The session included insider news and predictions about 340B actions within Congress, federal agencies, and the Administration, as well as updates on recent court cases of interest to 340B covered entities.
Bill, Peggy, and Barbara provide legislative, regulatory and judicial updates on the 340B program
Bill and Shuchi also participated in a session on contract pharmacies, which discussed whether increased governmental scrutiny of contract pharmacy arrangements could impact Ryan White clinics, as well as the practical steps that clinics can take to mitigate the 340B compliance risks associated with operating a contract pharmacy program. In a session on program income, Barbara summarized the HRSA HIV/AIDS Bureau (HAB) program income policies and how clinics can manage those restrictions. Bill and Peggy closed out the last panel of the day with a discussion on discriminatory reimbursement from private insurers and useful strategies to combat discriminatory practices. Representatives from Ryan White clinics also participated in the panels.
William von Oehsen
Bill has extensive experience in general health law, legislation and policy, especially in the areas of pharmaceutical pricing, food and drug law, materials management, managed care and third party reimbursement. He has more than 20 years of experience on pharmaceutical pricing and reimbursement matters, including the 340B drug discount program, the Medicaid drug rebate program, Medicare Part D, Robinson-Patman, and state Medicaid and pharmacy laws. In addition to representing safety-net providers participating in the 340B program, Bill provides guidance to pharmacies, pharmacy-related vendors and consultants, states, local governments, and other healthcare entities in their efforts to improve access to pharmaceutical care and to ensure compliance with drug pricing laws.
Peggy Tighe
Peggy works closely with both the Healthcare and Government Relations & Public Policy teams at Powers. She teams with health systems, patient groups, and provider organizations to develop persuasive policy arguments and strategies to influence Congress and relevant agencies, creating change to protect and support providers and the patients they serve. She focuses her practice on lobbying, coalition building, crafting and implementing grassroots campaigns, and coordinating media relations. She has experience strategizing and implementing federal grassroots activities, including grasstops (high-level grassroots), coalition building, letter writing, and database building.
Barbara Straub Williams
Barbara advises healthcare providers on a wide range of federal and state regulatory programs. She regularly advises clients on compliance with the requirements of the 340B drug discount program and on preparing for, and responding to, 340B audits. She has assisted clients in conducting internal audits on a variety of compliance issues and in making disclosures to the HHS Office of Inspector General, the Office of Pharmacy Affairs and other federal and state government entities. Her practice also focuses on Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement issues, both in advising clients on meeting regulatory requirements and representing clients before the Provider Reimbursement Review Board.
Shuchi Parickh
Shuchi focuses on drug pricing and reimbursement matters, including the rapidly- evolving 340B drug discount program. She has experience counseling a variety of 340B covered entities, including hospitals, federally qualified health centers, Ryan White clinics, tribal and Indian health centers and others. She counsels clients on appealing audit findings; internal and external 340B program audits; preparing self-disclosure letters; and evaluating compliance with Medicaid billing and reimbursement for 340B drugs. Additionally, Shuchi handles drafting and reviewing contract pharmacy agreements, analyzing the anti-kickback risks of 340B partnerships, and advocacy and coalition building.
For more information regarding the drug pricing or the 340B program, contact Bill von Oehsen at William.vonOehsen@powerslaw.com, Peggy Tighe at Peggy.tighe@powerslaw.com, Barbara Williams at Barbara.williams@powerslaw.com, or Shuchi Parikh at Shuchi.Parikh@powerslaw.com.