Trump secures final drug pricing accord with Regeneron
US President Donald Trump has announced a pricing agreement with Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, marking the final deal in a series of negotiations between the administration and leading drugmakers aimed at lowering the cost of medicines in the US.
The accord completes a set of agreements with 17 pharmaceutical groups — including Pfizer, Eli Lilly and Amgen — covering the majority of the branded medicines market. The companies have agreed to reduce prices for the Medicaid programme and for uninsured patients paying in cash, in an effort to bring US drug costs closer to those in other developed economies.
In return, the administration has offered a three-year exemption from tariffs on pharmaceutical imports. Participating companies have also committed to a “most-favoured nation” pricing model — pegging US prices to the lowest levels seen in comparable countries — and to distribute medicines through a planned federal platform, TrumpRx.gov.
Speaking at the White House, Trump said Regeneron would offer its treatments at “heavily discounted” rates under the new framework. Shares in the company rose 2.6 per cent following the announcement.
The US has long been an outlier in global drug pricing, with patients often paying significantly more than counterparts in Europe and other advanced markets. The administration has sought to use trade policy and pricing benchmarks to exert pressure on manufacturers.
Under the agreement, Regeneron will cut prices for its existing and future medicines supplied through Medicaid. The company has also committed to provide its gene therapy Otarmeni, recently approved for a rare form of childhood hearing loss, free of charge in the US.
In addition, Regeneron will reduce the price of its cholesterol treatment Praluent to $225, down from $537, and make it available via the government’s new distribution platform.
According to officials at the Department of Health and Human Services, the 17 companies involved account for roughly 86 per cent of the US branded pharmaceuticals market. However, generic medicines — which make up the vast majority of prescriptions — continue to dominate overall drug volumes, as noted by the Food and Drug Administration.
The agreements represent one of the most expansive attempts in recent years to reshape US drug pricing, though questions remain over implementation and the durability of the concessions once the tariff exemptions expire.