Rural Pharmacy and Prescription Drugs – Resources
Selected recent or important resources focusing on Rural Pharmacy and Prescription Drugs.
The 340B Drug Discount Program: Litigation Topics and Trends
Provides an overview of the 340B Drug Discount Program. Discusses litigation surrounding the 340B program, including lawsuits against 340B-covered entities over their use of contract pharmacies to distribute 340B drugs to patients and lawsuits against states that have enacted laws to protect contract pharmacies and covered entities inside their state. Describes courts' interpretation of the 340B statute. Offers considerations for the 119th Congress in light of the litigation and describes several legislative changes that Congress could make to the program if it chose to do so.
Date: 09/2025
Sponsoring organization: Congressional Research Service
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Provides an overview of the 340B Drug Discount Program. Discusses litigation surrounding the 340B program, including lawsuits against 340B-covered entities over their use of contract pharmacies to distribute 340B drugs to patients and lawsuits against states that have enacted laws to protect contract pharmacies and covered entities inside their state. Describes courts' interpretation of the 340B statute. Offers considerations for the 119th Congress in light of the litigation and describes several legislative changes that Congress could make to the program if it chose to do so.
Date: 09/2025
Sponsoring organization: Congressional Research Service
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Growth in the 340B Drug Pricing Program
Explores trends in drug purchases through the 340B program between 2010-2021. Discusses drugs purchased through the Prime Vendor Program, factors contributing to growth in the 340B program, and effects of the 340B program on the federal budget. Includes information on the growth of 340B Program participation by hospitals in Medicaid expansion and non-expansion states by Critical Access Hospital designation.
Additional links: Data Underlying Figures
Date: 09/2025
Sponsoring organization: Congressional Budget Office
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Explores trends in drug purchases through the 340B program between 2010-2021. Discusses drugs purchased through the Prime Vendor Program, factors contributing to growth in the 340B program, and effects of the 340B program on the federal budget. Includes information on the growth of 340B Program participation by hospitals in Medicaid expansion and non-expansion states by Critical Access Hospital designation.
Additional links: Data Underlying Figures
Date: 09/2025
Sponsoring organization: Congressional Budget Office
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Rural Beneficiary Access to Medicare Advantage-Part D Plans
Policy brief updating RUPRI's analysis of Medicare Advantage-Part D plans (MA-PDs) including enhanced benefit plan availability and differences in characteristics across metropolitan, micropolitan, and noncore areas. Features statistics including number of MA-PDs and stand-alone prescription drug plans (PDPs), average monthly premium costs, and availability in metropolitan, micropolitan, and noncore areas from 2008-2023.
Author(s): Edmer Lazaro, Dan M. Shane, Fred Ullrich, Keith Mueller
Date: 08/2025
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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Policy brief updating RUPRI's analysis of Medicare Advantage-Part D plans (MA-PDs) including enhanced benefit plan availability and differences in characteristics across metropolitan, micropolitan, and noncore areas. Features statistics including number of MA-PDs and stand-alone prescription drug plans (PDPs), average monthly premium costs, and availability in metropolitan, micropolitan, and noncore areas from 2008-2023.
Author(s): Edmer Lazaro, Dan M. Shane, Fred Ullrich, Keith Mueller
Date: 08/2025
Sponsoring organization: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
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The Uncertain Future of Medicare's Stand-Alone Prescription Drug Plan Market and Why It Matters
Discusses the Medicare Part D stand-alone prescription drug plan (PDP) market and the Part D premium stabilization demonstration. Describes the impact of PDP market stability on rural Medicare beneficiaries. Explores the potential effects of the continuation of, or changes to, the premium stabilization program.
Author(s): Juliette Cubanski, Tricia Neuman
Date: 07/2025
Sponsoring organization: KFF
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Discusses the Medicare Part D stand-alone prescription drug plan (PDP) market and the Part D premium stabilization demonstration. Describes the impact of PDP market stability on rural Medicare beneficiaries. Explores the potential effects of the continuation of, or changes to, the premium stabilization program.
Author(s): Juliette Cubanski, Tricia Neuman
Date: 07/2025
Sponsoring organization: KFF
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Congress Must Act to Bring Needed Reforms to the 340B Drug Pricing Program: Majority Staff Report
Presents findings from a U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions majority staff report on how covered entities generate and use revenue from the 340B Drug Pricing Program and how patients benefit from the program. Describes data and information collected from hospital covered entities, Bon Secours Mercy Health and Cleveland Clinic; Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) covered entities, Sun River Health and Yakima Valley Farm Workers Clinic; contract pharmacies, CVS Health and Walgreens; and drug manufacturers, Eli Lilly and Amgen. Includes rural references throughout.
Date: 04/2025
Sponsoring organization: Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions
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Presents findings from a U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions majority staff report on how covered entities generate and use revenue from the 340B Drug Pricing Program and how patients benefit from the program. Describes data and information collected from hospital covered entities, Bon Secours Mercy Health and Cleveland Clinic; Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) covered entities, Sun River Health and Yakima Valley Farm Workers Clinic; contract pharmacies, CVS Health and Walgreens; and drug manufacturers, Eli Lilly and Amgen. Includes rural references throughout.
Date: 04/2025
Sponsoring organization: Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions
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Stand-Alone Drug Plans Cover a Larger Share of Medicare Part D Enrollees Living in the Most Rural Areas Than Medicare Advantage Plans
Examines Medicare Part D enrollment in stand-alone Medicare prescription drug plans and Medicare Advantage drug plans in 2025. Presents data by urban, rural adjacent, and rural non-adjacent status nationally and by state.
Author(s): Juliette Cubanski, Tricia Neuman, Anthony Damico
Date: 04/2025
Sponsoring organization: KFF
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Examines Medicare Part D enrollment in stand-alone Medicare prescription drug plans and Medicare Advantage drug plans in 2025. Presents data by urban, rural adjacent, and rural non-adjacent status nationally and by state.
Author(s): Juliette Cubanski, Tricia Neuman, Anthony Damico
Date: 04/2025
Sponsoring organization: KFF
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Barriers and Facilitators to HPV Vaccination in Rural South Carolina Pharmacies: A Qualitative Investigation
Examines human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination services in rural South Carolina pharmacies. Utilizes interview feedback from rural community-based pharmacists and discusses barriers and facilitators to administering HPV vaccines.
Author(s): Abby Davies, Sarah Beth Tucker, Macie Goodman, Heather M. Brandt, Tessa J. Hastings
Citation: Implementation Science Communications, 6, 26
Date: 03/2025
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Examines human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination services in rural South Carolina pharmacies. Utilizes interview feedback from rural community-based pharmacists and discusses barriers and facilitators to administering HPV vaccines.
Author(s): Abby Davies, Sarah Beth Tucker, Macie Goodman, Heather M. Brandt, Tessa J. Hastings
Citation: Implementation Science Communications, 6, 26
Date: 03/2025
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Pharmacy-Related Syringe Access Barriers: An Audit of Oregon Community Pharmacies
Examines barriers to purchasing over-the-counter (OTC) syringes in Oregon pharmacies. Utilizes a telephone audit (secret shopper) methodology to examine 425 pharmacies' willingness to sell OTC syringes by pharmacy type, syringe services program (SSP) availability, overdose rates, and rural versus urban county type.
Author(s): Victor Abreu, Marissa McGinnis, Savannah Justen, et al.
Citation: Harm Reduction Journal, 22, 37
Date: 03/2025
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Examines barriers to purchasing over-the-counter (OTC) syringes in Oregon pharmacies. Utilizes a telephone audit (secret shopper) methodology to examine 425 pharmacies' willingness to sell OTC syringes by pharmacy type, syringe services program (SSP) availability, overdose rates, and rural versus urban county type.
Author(s): Victor Abreu, Marissa McGinnis, Savannah Justen, et al.
Citation: Harm Reduction Journal, 22, 37
Date: 03/2025
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Screening and Referral Programs for Diabetes and Cardiovascular Disease: Can Community Pharmacists Bridge the Care Gap?
Examines the community-based valued-driven care initiative (CVCI) in community pharmacies to evaluate its effectiveness related to screening and referral (S&R) to treat cardiovascular disease (CVD) and diabetes mellitus (DM). Analyzes patient demographics and success rates of CVD and DM S&R in 6 community pharmacies, with both rural and urban locations represented.
Author(s): Melanie Livet, Amber Watson, Shweta Pathak, et al.
Citation: Exploratory Research in Clinical and Social Pharmacy, 17, 100539
Date: 03/2025
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Examines the community-based valued-driven care initiative (CVCI) in community pharmacies to evaluate its effectiveness related to screening and referral (S&R) to treat cardiovascular disease (CVD) and diabetes mellitus (DM). Analyzes patient demographics and success rates of CVD and DM S&R in 6 community pharmacies, with both rural and urban locations represented.
Author(s): Melanie Livet, Amber Watson, Shweta Pathak, et al.
Citation: Exploratory Research in Clinical and Social Pharmacy, 17, 100539
Date: 03/2025
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Opioid Use Among Rural Medicare Beneficiaries
Examines trends in prescription opioid use among Medicare beneficiaries in rural areas, utilizing 2010-2017 Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey (MCBS) data. Provides data on receipt of opioid prescriptions among community-dwelling and facility-dwelling beneficiaries, associations between prescribing and chronic overlapping pain conditions (COPCs), and prescriptions exceeding CDC guidelines. Includes rural-urban comparisons.
Author(s): Yvonne Jonk, Heidi O'Connor, Karen Pearson, et al.
Date: 01/2025
Sponsoring organization: Maine Rural Health Research Center
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Examines trends in prescription opioid use among Medicare beneficiaries in rural areas, utilizing 2010-2017 Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey (MCBS) data. Provides data on receipt of opioid prescriptions among community-dwelling and facility-dwelling beneficiaries, associations between prescribing and chronic overlapping pain conditions (COPCs), and prescriptions exceeding CDC guidelines. Includes rural-urban comparisons.
Author(s): Yvonne Jonk, Heidi O'Connor, Karen Pearson, et al.
Date: 01/2025
Sponsoring organization: Maine Rural Health Research Center
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Last Updated: 9/10/2025