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Trump unveils major drug price deals with 9 Pharma giants, launches TrumpRx.gov to cut medicine costs in US
Trump unveils major drug price deals with 9 Pharma giants, launches TrumpRx.gov to cut medicine costs in US
President Trump announced landmark drug pricing agreements with nine pharmaceutical companies and the launch of TrumpRx.gov, aiming to lower US medicine prices and align them with Europe while warning insurers to cut premiums.
President Donald Trump on Friday unveiled a sweeping set of drug-pricing agreements with nine major pharmaceutical companies, presenting the initiative as a cornerstone of his effort to bring American medicine costs closer to those paid in Europe.
The announcement marked a significant expansion of the administration's pricing push, with Trump confirming that deals have now been struck with 14 of the 17 drugmakers he formally pressed in July to lower prices. Central to the strategy is the launch of a new direct-to-consumer portal, TrumpRx.gov, designed to allow patients to buy certain medicines without using insurance.
The companies named on Friday were Amgen, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol Myers Squibb, Genentech, Gilead Sciences, GSK, Merck, Novartis and Sanofi.
They join earlier participants including Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk and EMD Serono.
Drugmakers, according to administration officials, were keen to reach accommodation with the White House in order to avoid potential regulatory measures that could significantly reduce profits.
Under the agreements, participating manufacturers will sell selected medicines through their own websites, allowing Americans to pay directly rather than through insurers. The forthcoming government-run portal, TrumpRx.gov, will act as a central directory redirecting patients to those sites. Officials said the platform is expected to be fully operational in January, following a promotional launch earlier this autumn.
The direct-purchase model focuses largely on medicines commonly prescribed in primary care, rather than high-cost specialist treatments such as oncology drugs.
Among the medicines highlighted by the White House were Amgen's cholesterol drug Repatha at $239 per month, GSK's asthma inhaler Advair Diskus at $89 per month, and Merck's diabetes treatment Januvia at $100 per month.
However, not all offerings will be affordable for most households. Gilead's hepatitis C cure Epclusa will be priced at $2,492 per month through the site, despite the company noting that insured patients “typically… pay between $0 and $5 per month” through existing coverage or assistance programmes.
Several of the discounted medicines are also approaching the end of their patent life, a point at which competition from generics would, in any case, be expected to drive prices down.
The companies also committed to launching new medicines in the United States at prices comparable to those charged in other wealthy countries and to offering most products to state Medicaid programmes at internationally benchmarked rates.
People covered by Medicaid already face minimal out-of-pocket costs, capped by federal law at $8 per prescription for the lowest-income recipients. Medicaid is also legally entitled to the lowest drug prices available in the US market.
Bristol Myers Squibb said it would provide the blood thinner Eliquis free of charge to Medicaid programmes. A new Medicare price of $231 per month for Eliquis, enabled by a Biden-era law, is due to take effect in January. Commenting on the announcement, Dr Benjamin Rome of Brigham and Women's Hospital said: “It's very likely that Medicaid programs were already getting it for free or close to free.”
Health policy experts remain sceptical about the near-term impact. “The bottom line is that the agreements will not decrease prices for most Americans,” said Ameet Sarpatwari of Harvard Medical School.
In some cases, patients could pay more by bypassing insurance and purchasing directly through TrumpRx, particularly where existing coverage already offers lower co-payments.
Nonetheless, Trump framed the agreements in sweeping terms, claiming price reductions of up to 800 per cent and declaring: “This represents the greatest victory for patient affordability in the history of American health care by far.”
Speaking from the Roosevelt Room, the president also turned his attention to insurers, warning that executives would soon be summoned to Florida or the White House to discuss premium reductions.
“They have to make less, a lot less,” he said.
Following the remarks, shares in major insurers including UnitedHealth Group, CVS Health and Cigna fell. Responding on behalf of the industry, AHIP chief executive Mike Tuffin said: “Health plans are doing everything in their power to shield Americans from the high and rising costs of medical care, and we welcome any opportunity to discuss common-sense solutions to lower costs for everyone.”
The rhetoric comes as enhanced subsidies under the Affordable Care Act marketplaces are due to expire at the end of the year, a change expected to push up premiums for millions of Americans and sharpen political pressure on Republicans.
In exchange for the pricing concessions, drug companies secured three-year exemptions from potential tariffs on imported pharmaceuticals. Trump has repeatedly threatened steep duties on overseas-made medicines but has yet to impose them.
Executives from the participating firms appeared alongside the president during the announcement, each offering brief remarks praising the initiative and thanking the administration.
Three major manufacturers — AbbVie, Johnson & Johnson and Regeneron — have yet to finalise agreements, though all confirmed that discussions are ongoing. Trump said additional deals, including one with Johnson & Johnson, could be announced within days.
Despite the fanfare, the Trump-made deals stop short of imposing mandatory price controls and leave untouched the high cost of many brand-name drugs covered by private insurance and Medicare. Those expenses continue to be borne by employers, taxpayers and consumers through premiums and out-of-pocket payments.
The Trump administration has completed internal reviews of potential regulatory proposals, including rules on “guarding US Medicare against rising drug costs” and establishing a “global benchmark for efficient drug pricing”. No formal regulations have yet been announced, but officials acknowledge that the prospect of tougher action played a role in bringing drugmakers to the negotiating table.
For now, the White House is betting that TrumpRx.gov and voluntary agreements will demonstrate momentum on affordability — even as questions persist over how much relief most Americans will actually feel.
Source: Livemint
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