President Trump announced Monday that his administration has reached deals with nine more pharmaceutical companies to make certain prescription drugs available at reduced prices for state Medicaid programs.
Speaking from the Oval Office, Mr. Trump said the agreements are expected to deliver major savings. “In total, these agreements are projected to save Americans more than $600 billion over a very short period of time,” he said.
The move is tied to Mr. Trump’s “most-favored-nation” drug pricing initiative, a policy designed to bring U.S. prescription drug costs more in line with prices paid in other developed countries. The broader plan includes offering discounted medications directly to consumers through TrumpRx, a website launched by the administration in February that provides savings on brand-name drugs.
According to the White House, 17 drugmakers had already agreed over the past year to voluntarily cut prices under the “most favored nation” framework, according to the White House.
“With today’s announcement, we now have 26 companies representing 90% of the domestic pharmaceutical market, and the other 10% are also coming in,” Mr. Trump said. “They have no choice.”
The latest group of companies consists of midsize pharmaceutical manufacturers, according to a White House fact sheet. The firms are Alcon, Astellas Pharma, BeOne Medicines, BridgeBio, CSL, Kyowa Kirin, Sun Pharma, Teva Pharmaceuticals and UCB.
The White House said the participating companies will make their drugs available to Medicaid programs in all 50 states, a step officials said will lead to “billions of dollars in savings for Americans.”
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The Trump administration also said the companies have pledged a combined $19.6 billion in manufacturing investments.
Alain Sherter
