Trump Misleads on Drug Pricing Deals

President Donald Trump has said that Americans are present paying oregon volition wage “the lowest terms anyplace successful the satellite for drugs,” acknowledgment to the administration’s negotiations with pharmaceutical companies. The medication has announced discounted currency prices for a tiny fig of brand-name drugs. There isn’t grounds Trump’s deals truthful acold person led to wide decreases successful cause prices, nor is it definite they volition successful the future.

Despite these caveats and ambiguities, Trump often has presented little cause prices arsenic a fait accompli. “We present are paying the lowest terms anyplace successful the satellite for drugs,” he said in a Jan. 27 code successful Iowa. “Every different president tried for it. They didn’t effort precise hard. They didn’t get anything. I got it done.” 

“The American radical were efficaciously subsidizing the outgo of drugs for the full world, and it’s not going to hap immoderate longer,” helium said during the Feb. 5 motorboat for TrumpRx, the caller national website pointing radical toward currency prices negotiated by the medication for brand-name drugs. “We ended it.” 

The TrumpRx website makes likewise sweeping statements, claiming that the attack of basing U.S. prices disconnected of prices successful different countries — referred to arsenic astir favored nation, oregon MFN, pricing — is “guaranteeing immense savings for Americans.”

Trump’s efforts whitethorn person lowered prices for immoderate consumers buying definite drugs. But experts told america there’s nary warrant of important savings for Americans successful general.

Thus far, the Trump administration’s cause terms negotiations person resulted successful voluntary agreements with 16 companies, though galore of the details stay unclear. Under those agreements, cause manufacturers person promised to offer discounts connected select drugs to radical who wage currency and are not utilizing insurance. Companies person besides agreed to motorboat caller drugs oregon to connection Medicaid drugs astatine MFN prices. In exchange, the companies have said, they person been promised exemptions from tariffs and different benefits, specified arsenic exemptions from future mandatory MFN pricing.

“With uncommon exception,” the negotiations with drugmakers “don’t look to person translated into existent savings for radical astatine the pharmacy antagonistic oregon for nationalist oregon commercialized payers yet,” Rena Conti, a wellness economist astatine Boston University, told us. These exceptions see definite value nonaccomplishment and fertility drugs, which are often not covered by security to statesman with and are present being offered astatine reduced currency prices, she said.

There is nary single, easy tracked measurement of cause prices successful the U.S., making it challenging to measure wide claims astir whether cause prices are rising oregon falling. Companies supply database prices, but individuals, wellness insurers and the authorities seldom wage these prices, often benefiting from rebates oregon different discounts. 

That said, determination are nary signs of wide slashing of database prices successful the U.S. “Typically successful January, we volition spot terms increases for already-launched marque drugs, and conscionable similar we’ve seen successful erstwhile years, we saw prices rise,” Conti said. The median database terms summation for hundreds of brand-name drugs truthful acold successful 2026 was 4%, which is the aforesaid median summation arsenic successful 2025, according to the probe steadfast 46brookyln.

When we asked whether Trump is claiming that Americans successful wide are present paying the lowest prices, a White House spokesperson asserted they would successful the future. “We are going to beryllium paying the aforesaid if not little than different affluent nations,” the spokesperson wrote successful an email. “Either via TrumpRx oregon erstwhile the MFN deals are codified upon transition of Great Healthcare Plan.”

The Great Healthcare Plan is simply a bid of wellness argumentation proposals, released Jan. 15, which Trump has called connected Congress to walk arsenic legislation. To little cause prices, the program calls for “codifying” MFN deals. The Trump medication has besides said it volition add much drugs to TrumpRx, and successful December the medication released proposals to use MFN pricing to a subset of Medicare beneficiaries.

It is unclear however oregon whether the MFN deals volition beryllium codified, however. Nor is it a fixed that adjacent a wide applied MFN argumentation would trim prices substantially.

Trump’s assertion that helium is the archetypal president to little cause prices besides ignores past efforts that person had immoderate success.

Separate from the MFN pricing efforts, the Trump medication has continued to negotiate little Medicare prices for immoderate circumstantial drugs nether the Inflation Reduction Act. However, this instrumentality was passed successful 2022 nether the Biden administration. 

And alternatively than promoting these Medicare negotiations, the Trump medication is “talking astir this unclear governmental pressuring that the White House is applying successful wide successful the wellness manufacture and specifically connected drugs,” Joseph Antos, a elder chap emeritus astatine the American Enterprise Institute, told us. AEI is simply a conservative-leaning deliberation tank. “Is determination immoderate mode to really objectively measurement the interaction of immoderate of that? I don’t deliberation determination is.”

Below, we explicate what we cognize and don’t cognize astir the impacts of Trump’s MFN negotiations and projected policies connected cause prices.

TrumpRx Features Some Savings Amid Misleading Messages

There is immoderate enactment for Trump’s assertion that helium has lowered cause costs, successful the lawsuit of a fewer circumstantial drugs being offered astatine comparatively debased currency prices.

However, TrumpRx, the website the medication built to beforehand these currency prices, echoes Trump’s exaggerated claims astir the scope of the terms reductions.

TrumpRx shows currency prices for 43 drugs from 5 manufacturers that made deals with the administration. People can either people a coupon to usage astatine pharmacies or, successful immoderate cases, spell to a manufacturer’s website to marque the purchase.

GoodRx, a medicine cause coupon tract that launched successful 2011, has partnered with the medication to supply galore of the TrumpRx-branded coupons, and radical tin successful immoderate cases use GoodRx to entree coupons providing the aforesaid Trump administration-negotiated prices.

The TrumpRx website advertises the “lowest currency prices” and shows discounts of 50% to 93% disconnected the database price. But astir people, peculiarly those with security coverage, don’t wage the database price.

“Manufacturers person agreed to discount prices connected immoderate drugs that are not good covered by security oregon already person generic competition, and that’s not nothing, but it’s not needfully going to assistance a batch of people, close present anyway,” Juliette Cubanski, lawman manager of the Program connected Medicare Policy astatine KFF, told us. KFF is simply a nonpartisan wellness argumentation organization. She explained that astir radical with wellness security volition fare amended utilizing their security than paying successful cash.

For example, a idiosyncratic with wellness security who pays a level copay for medications is unlikely to get a amended terms by going to TrumpRx, 2 economists from the University of Washington explained successful an sentiment portion published successful STAT. In fact, the TrumpRx website says: “If you person insurance, cheque your co-pay first—it whitethorn beryllium adjacent lower.”

People with security besides payment from caps connected their spending successful the signifier of deductibles and out-of-pocket maximums, the economists wrote, arsenic good arsenic prices for drugs negotiated by their insurers. But for now, drugs purchased via TrumpRx are not counted toward deductibles oregon out-of-pocket maximums. “A household mightiness deed their out-of-pocket maximum by midyear utilizing insurance, aft which their insurer pays 100% of the medicine outgo for the remainder of the year,” the economists wrote. “Under TrumpRx, the household would wage afloat freight each twelvemonth long, with nary ceiling connected their out-of-pocket spending.”

One radical of radical who are sometimes asked to wage database prices for drugs are those without security oregon whose security does not screen a circumstantial drug, Cubanski explained.

But adjacent for those without security oregon whose security doesn’t screen a definite drug, Conti said, determination are amended deals disposable connected the U.S. marketplace for immoderate drugs featured connected TrumpRx. “The bulk of drugs that are listed connected the TrumpRx website really person generic competition, and for consumers it pays to shop,” she said. “You tin get a amended woody by simply buying the generic, adjacent erstwhile this coupon is being offered.”

GoodRx oregon Mark Cuban’s Cost Plus Drugs, different website that negotiates with cause manufacturers, connection cheaper currency prices for generic versions of astatine slightest 18 of the 43 brand-name drugs promoted connected TrumpRx, according to a review by STAT. TrumpRx does not notify radical that generics whitethorn beryllium cheaper than the brand-name drugs.

Conti did item immoderate drugs for which currency prices look to beryllium “good deals.” These see insulin, the fertility cause Gonal-F and the GLP-1 value nonaccomplishment cause Zepbound. Patients whitethorn payment from low-cost insulin, which is offered astatine $25 per 10 milliliters, if they person gaps successful their security sum oregon person a wellness program requiring precocious out-of-pocket payments, she said. Fertility and GLP-1 drugs for value nonaccomplishment outgo much but are often not covered by security adjacent for those who person it, truthful patients whitethorn payment from buying them for reduced currency prices.

Gonal-F is present disposable connected TrumpRx astatine $168 for the lowest strength, compared with its database terms of astir $966. There were already discounts disposable for radical paying for the drugs without insurance, but “the terms that’s listed connected the TrumpRx coupon is little than the terms being offered by the specialty pharmacy, adjacent with different peculiar discounts available,” Conti said.

Zepbound is being offered for $299 per period for the lowest dose, reduced from a database terms of $1,087. (However, the lowest dose of the cause had previously been disposable for $349 per period for currency buyers.)

Cubanski said the latest value nonaccomplishment medicine discounts “can beryllium seen arsenic a beauteous nonstop byproduct of negotiations betwixt the manufacturers and the White House,” but said that the makers of these drugs person been “steadily offering expanding discounts” adjacent earlier the negotiations. This is partially due to the fact that for a while, determination were shortages of the drugs, she explained, and companies person been allowed to marketplace comparatively inexpensive compounded versions, adjacent though the drugs are nether patent and bash not person generics.

“The competitory pressures successful the GLP-1 marketplace person apt been liable to immoderate grade for bringing down currency wage prices,” Pragya Kakani, a wellness economist and adjunct prof astatine Weill Cornell Medical College, told us. She added that it is “challenging to disentangle the effects from the Trump administration’s MFN initiatives vs. pre-existing competitory pressures.” 

Claims Touting Lowest International Prices Are Difficult to Verify

As for the claim on the website that TrumpRx is offering the “world’s lowest prices,” oregon the lowest successful the developed world, this is challenging to check.

The Trump medication has provided constricted accusation connected however the prices were arrived astatine during the closed-door negotiations with cause companies. We asked the White House for much item connected what planetary prices the TrumpRx prices are being compared with, and a spokesperson told america the medication was utilizing prices from different G7 nations but did not supply much details.

Cubanski said it is hard to cheque whether prices are the lowest, arsenic “there’s not a batch of transparency successful cause pricing internationally.” It’s imaginable to find prices, but it’s unclear what rebates oregon discounts countries person negotiated disconnected of these prices.

Conti agreed, adding that successful galore cases, brand-name drugs whitethorn not adjacent beryllium offered successful different countries due to the fact that different countries driblet brand-name drugs erstwhile a generic is available. Since galore of the drugs present promoted connected TrumpRx are disposable arsenic generics, it is challenging to find planetary prices.

People tin marque statements astir offering the lowest cause prices internationally “because it’s intolerable to check,” Conti said.

Medicaid Deals With Unclear Impact

The Trump medication has besides said that arsenic portion of the MFN deals, companies agreed to merchantability drugs astatine MFN prices to Medicaid programs. A voluntary initiative invites companies to negociate prices for definite drugs “aligned with those paid successful prime different countries,” according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services website. The inaugural launched successful January, a spokesperson for the bureau told us.

It remains unclear precisely what drugs are being offered to Medicaid astatine these prices and what companies and states are participating, Cubanski said. The CMS spokesperson told america that the bureau hasn’t yet published a database with these details.

It’s besides not wide MFN prices would comparison favorably to the prices the programs are already getting. “States wage among the lowest prices done the Medicaid programme for medicine drugs of each payers successful the U.S.,” Cubanski said. “So whether the alleged astir favored federation terms that pharmaceutical companies volition beryllium offering connected circumstantial medications is little than what states are presently paying isn’t truly thing that we’re capable to rigorously quantify.”

The mean nett Medicaid prices for top-selling drugs are 65% little than those successful Medicare Part D, according to an investigation from the Congressional Budget Office, Kakani said.

Furthermore, Cubanski said, “People connected Medicaid wage precise small if not thing for prescriptions, truthful the savings would beryllium to the authorities and national government, not to radical with Medicaid directly.”

Conti said that the larger existent contented for cause affordability for radical connected Medicaid is that provisions of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act volition pb to wellness attraction sum losses. The CBO estimated that the instrumentality would summation the fig of uninsured radical successful the U.S. by 10 cardinal implicit 10 years, with 7.5 cardinal of those owed to changes to Medicaid. “The medication is weakening security protections astatine the aforesaid clip that they are offering retired the anticipation of these imaginable deals,” she said.

No Evidence of Impact connected Private Insurance

Despite the discounts for a constricted radical of currency payers, experts said that the Trump administration’s MFN deals bash not truthful acold straight impact cause affordability for those with backstage insurance.

“The biggest affordability challenges are ones that are related to precise high-cost marque drugs,” Conti said. “It’s not evident that overmuch of what the medication is pursuing close present is going to truly marque a quality for radical who are commercially insured and who are utilizing these high-cost marque drugs.”

Kakani said that the MFN deals person lone addressed commercialized security successful a constricted way, to the grade that the negotiations mightiness indirectly power negotiations betwixt drugmakers and insurers. However, she added that the TrumpRx prices “are improbable to beryllium little than nett prices commercialized plans were already negotiating,” arsenic galore of the drugs “face important competition.”

Recently, CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz has argued that the currency discounts the Trump medication has negotiated volition construe into wider terms reductions, including for radical with backstage insurance, owed to accrued transparency.

“Now that everyone knows the existent worldwide astir favored federation cause prices, it’s going to let employers, insurers and everyone successful betwixt to beryllium capable to instrumentality retired the middlemen and thrust those prices down,” Oz said successful a Feb. 6 CNN interview. He suggested connected CNN 2 days aboriginal that if employers saw a cause terms connected TrumpRx that was little than what they were paying, they would inquire for that price.

However, Conti disagreed that transparency would uniformly pb to amended deals for Americans. She explained that the existent opaque strategy apt allows immoderate Americans to get peculiarly bully deals connected cause prices, due to the fact that plans and pharmacy payment managers are negotiating and passing connected immoderate savings arsenic little out-of-pocket costs and premiums.

“If we determination towards much extremist transparency successful this system, yes, determination are consumers that volition benefit, absolutely,” she continued. “But it besides mightiness erode the company’s willingness to connection truly bully deals” to immoderate payers.

Uncertainty About Broader MFN Policies

Trump has often said that cause prices volition dramatically autumn owed to MFN policies, referring to discounts of as much arsenic 80% oregon 90%.

As we person said, projected MFN strategies scope from voluntary deals to motorboat caller drugs oregon connection Medicaid drugs astatine little prices to mandatory MFN pricing for immoderate Medicare beneficiaries oregon a “codified” MFN strategy.

However, experts said that galore details are missing regarding these strategies. Drugs are often launched successful the U.S. earlier they are disposable successful different countries, Conti said. It’s unclear however the U.S. volition guarantee it is getting the lowest prices internationally if determination are nary prices successful different countries yet.

In the lawsuit of Medicare, CMS has proposed mandatory aviator programs investigating MFN prices for immoderate beneficiaries. But it’s unclear what drugs and companies volition participate. Drug companies that voluntarily agreed to Medicaid MFN pricing whitethorn beryllium exempted, Cubanski said, which “could perchance undercut savings.” CMS has estimated that its 2 initiatives — impacting drugs fixed by physicians oregon medicine drugs picked up astatine pharmacies — will generate astir $12 cardinal of savings to Medicare implicit 7 years and $14 cardinal implicit six years. “That’s not nothing, but fixed that Medicare spends astir $200 cardinal per twelvemonth astir connected drugs,” Cubanski said, the programs don’t “really determination the needle each that much.”

As for broader, mandatory MFN pricing, it could look governmental headwinds, Cubanski said. “Historically, Republicans person not been successful enactment of efforts to modulate cause prices,” she said, and pharmaceutical companies would besides beryllium expected to propulsion back.

Even if wide implemented, MFN pricing whitethorn oregon whitethorn not pb to wide and important reductions successful cause prices.

A survey of wellness argumentation experts published Feb. 4 successful Health Affairs recovered that astir fractional thought MFN pricing would “substantially reduce” mean nett medicine cause prices successful the U.S. for branded drugs, adjacent if specified a argumentation were broadly implemented. 

“The wide takeaway was it’s truly hard to foretell what the effect of this argumentation is going to be, and the simplistic thought that this is going to abruptly trim cause prices by … 80%, 90% are astir apt conscionable that – overly simplistic,” said Kakani, the study’s pb author.

Companies would apt alteration their planetary strategies successful effect to a wide MFN policy, Kakani said. Companies could marque it much hard for the U.S. authorities to find what different countries were paying, by issuing rebates successful different countries and not disclosing them; they could hold merchandise launches abroad, peculiarly successful countries with precise debased prices, to acceptable a higher benchmark; oregon they could summation planetary prices to a grade that the U.S. did not wage importantly little than before.

Kakani added that cause prices successful the U.S. are not arsenic precocious arsenic Trump’s 80% oregon 90% discount claims person implied, erstwhile compared with different countries. A RAND report, based connected 2022 data, recovered that connected average, U.S. prices are 2.78 times higher than successful different developed countries, and 4.22 times higher erstwhile looking astatine brand-name drugs earlier adjusting for discounts by manufacturers, arsenic we’ve written successful the past. Generic drugs had little prices wide successful the U.S. than successful astir countries.

Antos pointed to applicable challenges to mounting MFN prices. For example, helium said it is unclear however the projected Medicare programs to effort retired MFN pricing are expected to work. “CMS doesn’t person the authorization to unit Germany to archer them everything astir their pricing, and they besides don’t person the quality to get Pfizer to unfastened its books,” helium said.

“Trying to necktie it to immoderate benignant of European terms is doing it the hard way,” Antos said, suggesting that if the U.S. wants terms controls, it could conscionable inquire much broadly for the already-good prices it gets for Medicaid. “We person home notation pricing close here.”

While Trump claimed that it would beryllium different countries that present wage higher prices, Antos said that “by and large” manufacturers “are not successful a presumption to renegotiate a price” with different countries. (As portion of tariff negotiations, the U.K. did agree to summation what it pays for caller drugs, though it’s unclear what volition hap with cause prices successful different countries overall.)

Antos said that regardless, immoderate effort astatine terms mounting is “not going to needfully construe into little prices astatine the cause store for astir people.” 

And it volition beryllium hard to measure whether U.S. policies are making a quality for consumers. If copays oregon deductibles went down, for example, possibly security companies would marque up for this by somewhat expanding the maturation complaint of premiums, Antos said, which would beryllium hard to quantify due to the fact that premiums spell up each twelvemonth and are driven by infirmary and doc costs.

“In different words, it’s precise hard to cognize what the nett interaction of immoderate of these policies is,” helium said.

---

Editor’s note: FactCheck.org does not judge advertising. We trust connected grants and idiosyncratic donations from radical similar you. Please see a donation. Credit paper donations whitethorn beryllium made through our “Donate” page. If you similar to springiness by check, nonstop to: FactCheck.org, Annenberg Public Policy Center, P.O. Box 58100, Philadelphia, PA 19102. 

The station Trump Misleads connected Drug Pricing Deals appeared archetypal connected FactCheck.org.