Trump pushes executive order to cut drug prices

USA – President Donald Trump has announced plans to sign a new executive order aimed at lowering prescription drug prices in the United States by tying them to the lowest rates paid in other countries.

Posting on Truth Social, Trump said the order would introduce a “most favoured nation” (MFN) pricing model, ensuring federal programs like Medicare pay no more for medications than the lowest price charged globally.

He criticized the high cost of drugs in the US compared to other nations, saying Americans were unfairly bearing the full burden of pharmaceutical research and development costs.

According to Trump, this approach could slash US drug prices by 30% to 80% almost immediately, and save the country trillions of dollars.

He claimed the order would be “one of the most consequential” in US history, promising substantial reductions in healthcare expenses for American citizens.

Trump previously attempted to implement a similar policy during his presidency in 2020, but the initiative was blocked and later dropped under the Biden administration following legal challenges from the pharmaceutical industry.

At the time, industry group PhRMA argued the policy overstepped government authority and could restrict patient access to medications.

Despite previous pushback, Trump insisted he won’t back down this time, even suggesting that campaign contributions from pharmaceutical companies will not influence his stance.

He framed the move as a long-overdue step toward fairness and accountability in drug pricing, aligning it with goals that both political parties have discussed for years.

A recent report from the Department of Health and Human Services cited data from RAND, revealing that drug prices in the US are nearly three times higher than those in comparable OECD countries, even after accounting for rebates.