Trump to sign order cutting US drug prices to match lowest global rates
US President Donald Trump said on Sunday he will sign an executive order to reduce the price of prescription drugs, aligning them with the lowest rates paid by other wealthy nations.
Trump, in a post on Truth Social, announced that the order would be signed Monday morning and would enforce a 'most favoured nation' pricing model. Under the policy, the United States would pay no more for prescription drugs than the lowest-paying country worldwide.
'We will pay the same price as the nation that pays the lowest price anywhere in the world,' Trump wrote, calling the initiative a step toward 'fairness to America.'
The US currently pays more than any other country for many prescription medications — often up to three times more than other developed nations. Trump did not provide full details of the plan or how it would be implemented.
Photo: Trump post about the major step in pharmaceutical industry
Four pharmaceutical industry lobbyists told the media they had been briefed by the White House and expect the order to apply beyond the drugs covered under President Joe Biden's Inflation Reduction Act.
That law initiated the first-ever price negotiations for 10 drugs under Medicare, set to take effect next year.
More medicines are scheduled for negotiation later in 2025.
'Government price setting in any form is bad for American patients,' said Alex Schriver, spokesperson for the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, the leading drug industry lobbying group.
This is not Trump's first attempt to implement international reference pricing. A similar proposal in his first term was blocked in court. At the time, the policy was expected to save US taxpayers more than $85 billion over seven years.
The US government currently spends over $400 billion annually on prescription drugs.
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