TrumpRX: The White House’s Attempt to Cut Prescription Drug Costs

Since President Trump’s first term, he has made it clear that reducing prescription drug pricing is a priority. In September of this year, the White House announced TrumpRx, a website where consumers can buy drugs directly from manufacturers—the idea is that drug prices can be lowered by taking the middleman out of the equation. With the announcement of the platform, they also disclosed the terms of a deal with Pfizer to lower the cost of certain drugs that they distribute. The number of drugs included in the deal has not been disclosed. Pfizer has also agreed to invest $70 billion into U.S.-based R&D and drug manufacturing. It is important to note that the deal will not significantly impact Pfizer financially. “This appears largely benign,” Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Carter Gould wrote in a report.

In return for agreeing to these terms, the Trump administration will exempt Pfizer from national-security-related tariffs while the company transitions to U.S.-based manufacturing. “It’s a win for American patients, a win for American leadership, and it’s a win for Pfizer because it provides the certainty and stability we need to continue advancing new breakthrough medicines for patients,” said Amy Rose, a spokeswoman for Pfizer. However, some have expressed concerns that, in practice, TrumpRx would not benefit many consumers since most people already have health insurance and pay less than the TrumpRx price would be.

The Trump administration has been negotiating with weight-loss drug makers Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk to sell their drugs on the TrumpRx platform. Because both would be covered by Medicare and Medicaid, the deal would be very profitable for the involved companies. Medicare already covers the use of weight-loss drugs to treat illnesses other than obesity, such as sleep apnea and reducing the risk of heart attacks, but this deal would allow Medicare coverage for treating obesity. As part of the agreement, Lilly is requesting an FDA voucher that would expedite the review process for their new weight-loss pill.

While the full impact of TrumpRx is uncertain, the initiative underscores growing political pressure on pharmaceutical pricing and the potential for new distribution models to reshape the market.