AbbVie, Novartis and Bristol Myers Squibb Sue Illinois Over 340B Contract Pharmacy Law

Pharmaceutical companies AbbVie, Bristol Myers Squibb, and Novartis have filed separate lawsuits in Illinois challenging a recently enacted state law (HB 2371) that regulates how drugmakers interact with hospitals and pharmacies participating in the federal 340B Drug Pricing Program.

The law bars manufacturers from restricting which pharmacies hospitals can use to dispense 340B‑discounted drugs and from imposing additional conditions on contract pharmacy arrangements, aiming to protect safety‑net providers and their patients.

The companies argue the Illinois statute violates the U.S. Constitution’s Supremacy and Takings Clauses, claiming it unilaterally rewrites federal 340B terms, forces them to provide more discounted drugs than Congress requires, and amounts to an uncompensated taking of their property.

They also contend that commercial pharmacies and third‑party administrators are profiting from the program, and that state‑by‑state contract pharmacy laws create a patchwork that undermines uniform federal administration of 340B pricing.

The Illinois cases are part of a broader wave of litigation over state contract pharmacy laws, with courts in several states recently upholding or enjoining similar statutes.