First Circuit Drops HHS Appeal in Battle Over Drug Rebate Pilot

A federal appeals court dismissed an appeal from the US Department of Health and Human Services that sought to lift a block on a drug rebate pilot.

The order, filed Tuesday by the US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, comes after the government and hospitals groups agreed to voluntarily drop the appeal as the health department reconsiders the 340B Rebate Model Pilot Program.

The pilot was slated to start Jan. 1, but hospital groups in December 2025 challenged HHS over its procedure to implement it. A federal judge in Maine issued a preliminary injunction against the ...