9 Drugmakers Reach Deals With Trump on Prices to Avoid Tariffs
Commerce Secretary Lutnick Hints at More Deals to Come in 2026
Key Takeaways:
- Trump announced deals with nine pharmaceutical companies Dec. 19 to cut some U.S. drug prices in exchange for three-year tariff reprieves.
- With the pledges, 14 of 17 targeted drugmakers agreed to lower Medicaid prices, sell discounted drugs directly and launch new medicines at overseas price parity.
- The administration expects remaining companies to sign after the holidays as TrumpRX launches next year, while some firms pledged stockpile donations and Democrats seek transparency.
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President Donald Trump announced deals with nine pharmaceutical companies Dec. 19, the latest in a series of pacts designed to lower drug prices for some Americans in exchange for a three-year reprieve from threatened tariffs on their products.
The most recent pledges mean 14 of the 17 drugmakers targeted by Trump this summer have agreed to lower prices for the Medicaid program for low-income and disabled people, sell discounted drugs directly to consumers and launch new medicines for the same prices in the U.S. as they do abroad.
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“American drug prices will come down fast and furious and will soon be among the lowest in the developed world,” Trump said during an event in the Oval Office.
Roche Holding AG’s Genentech unit, Novartis AG,Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.,Gilead Sciences, Boehringer Ingelheim,Amgen Inc.,GSK,SanofiandMerck & Co.have now negotiated agreements with the administration. The pacts are similar to those struck earlier this year by Pfizer Inc. and AstraZeneca.
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The three companies that haven’t announced deals with the administration yet areAbbVie Inc.,Johnson & JohnsonandRegeneron Pharmaceuticals.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick suggested that the other three companies would be announcing similar deals after the holidays, as the president looks to roll out the TrumpRX website, where the discounted drugs will be available in the new year.
“This will have a tremendous impact on health care,” Trump said.
Americans pay the most in the world for medicines, which has been a motivating force for Trump. The companies say that pricing dynamic helps fuel their research, and that the U.S. market works differently than foreign countries.
Companies including Merck, Bristol-Myers and GSK agreed to donate six months’ worth of some raw drug materials to a national stockpile of active pharmaceutical ingredients. They also agreed to manufacture the finished medicines if there’s an emergency, senior administration officials said. The donations include materials to make antibiotics and inhalers to treat respiratory disease.
Democrats have recentlyfrom companies about whether these tariff relief deals will truly save the U.S. government money, as the agreements are confidential.
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