Drugmaker Pfizer has agreed to lower drug costs and invest $70 billion in U.S. manufacturing
Drugmaker Pfizer has agreed to lower drug costs and invest $70 billion in U.S. manufacturing under a deal struck with the Trump administration, President Donald Trump said Tuesday.
The announcement, which Trump made with Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla at the White House, came as the Republican president has for months sought to lower drug costs. It also came as Washington was facing a federal government shutdown at midnight amid a standoff between Democrats and Republicans over health care and its costs.
Under the agreement, New York-based Pfizer will charge most-favored-nation pricing to Medicaid and guarantee that pricing on newly launched drugs, Trump said. That involves matching the lowest price offered in other developed nations.
“I can’t tell you how big this is," the president said.
“I think today we are turning the tide and we are reversing an unfair situation,” Bourla said.
The president has been talking for months about the need to lower drug prices. In May, he issued an executive order that gave drugmakers 30 days to electively lower prices or face new limits on what the government will pay.
To persuade them to strike deals, Trump said he threatened to impose tariffs — a favorite tool of his to use as leverage across all areas of government — but that move could raise drug prices.
It’s unclear how the new policy will affect Medicaid patients who often pay a nominal co-payment of a few dollars to fill their prescriptions, but lower prices could help state budgets that fund the programs. Medicaid is the state and federally funded program for people with low incomes.
“This is something that most people said was not doable,” Trump said Tuesday.
Trump said he’s making deals with other drugmakers, and “they’re all coming in over the next week.”
The announcement, which Trump made with Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla at the White House, came as the Republican president has for months sought to lower drug costs. It also came as Washington was facing a federal government shutdown at midnight amid a standoff between Democrats and Republicans over health care and its costs.
Under the agreement, New York-based Pfizer will charge most-favored-nation pricing to Medicaid and guarantee that pricing on newly launched drugs, Trump said. That involves matching the lowest price offered in other developed nations.
“I can’t tell you how big this is," the president said.
“I think today we are turning the tide and we are reversing an unfair situation,” Bourla said.
The president has been talking for months about the need to lower drug prices. In May, he issued an executive order that gave drugmakers 30 days to electively lower prices or face new limits on what the government will pay.
To persuade them to strike deals, Trump said he threatened to impose tariffs — a favorite tool of his to use as leverage across all areas of government — but that move could raise drug prices.
It’s unclear how the new policy will affect Medicaid patients who often pay a nominal co-payment of a few dollars to fill their prescriptions, but lower prices could help state budgets that fund the programs. Medicaid is the state and federally funded program for people with low incomes.
“This is something that most people said was not doable,” Trump said Tuesday.
Trump said he’s making deals with other drugmakers, and “they’re all coming in over the next week.”
