Michael P NortonState House News Service.President Donald Trump said the executive order he signed Monday morning will reduce prescription drug prices by 30 percent to 80 percent "almost immediately," though the text itself and White House officials describe a more involved process that is less certain to lead to price reductions.Policy analysts have flagged prescription drug costs and utilization as a driver of health care cost increases in Massachusetts and across the United States. The high cost of prescriptions has been one of the most intractable problems for policymakers here to address and the escalating prices combined with huge demand for expensive weight loss drugs is driving up costs across the health care system."For many years the World has wondered why Prescription Drugs and Pharmaceuticals in the United States States of America were SO MUCH HIGHER IN PRICE THAN THEY WERE IN ANY OTHER NATION, SOMETIMES BEING FIVE TO TEN TIMES MORE EXPENSIVE THAN THE SAME DRUG, MANUFACTURED IN THE EXACT SAME LABORATORY OR PLANT, BY THE SAME COMPANY??? It was always difficult to explain and very embarrassing because, in fact, there was no correct or rightful answer," Trump wrote in a social media post Sunday night.White House officials said the United States accounts for 5 percent of the world's population but about 75 percent of the world's pharmaceutical profits. They said the idea behind Trump's order is that American patients and taxpayers have been footing the bill for global research and development by paying higher prices for prescription drugs, and that drug companies should give the United States prices at least as favorable as what they charge from health systems in other countries."Our Country will finally be treated fairly, and our citizens Healthcare Costs will be reduced by numbers never even thought of before. Additionally, on top of everything else, the United States will save TRILLIONS OF DOLLARS," the president posted.The executive order declares that Americans must have access to "the most-favored-nation price" for prescription drugs and biologics. That would mean that the United States would pay the same price as whichever nation pays the lowest price for a drug. Trump's order, however, does not mandate anything of drug companies and instead requests that they lower their prices under threat of further government action.White House officials told reporters Monday, May 12 that the executive action will unfold along a few fronts.First, the U.S. Trade Representative and the U.S. Department of Commerce are directed to take "all necessary and appropriate action" against unreasonable and discriminatory policies in foreign countries that suppress drug prices abroad. U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr., who joined Trump for a Monday morning event on the order, is directed to facilitate direct-to-consumer sales at "most-favored-nation" prices for drugs deemed appropriate.Within 30 days, Kennedy is to set nonbinding targets for prescription drug price reductions across all markets of the United States. He is then to "communicate most-favored-nation price targets to pharmaceutical manufacturers to bring prices for American patients in line with comparably developed nations," the order says.There is nothing in the order compelling drug companies to honor those prices, but White House officials said Kennedy's actions are expected to lead to a round of negotiations between the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the pharmaceutical industry."[S]hould drug manufacturers fail to offer American consumers the most-favored-nation lowest price, my Administration will take additional aggressive action," Trump's order says. It later specifies that the additional action could include regulatory action to impose most-favored-nation pricing or a ruling that could allow for low-cost drugs to be imported from other countries.Kennedy said Monday that Americans spend $1,126 per capita on drugs, while that number is $240 in Britain. He suggested drug prices in other parts of the world will have to increase markedly to satisfy Trump's new executive order."President Trump is saying to our European partners, is you got to raise the amount that you're paying for those drugs and pay for your share of the innovation, that the United States is no longer subsidizing that," Kennedy said. "If the Europeans raise the price of their drugs by just 20 percent that is $10 trillion that can be spent on innovation and the health of all people all across the globe is going to increase because we're going to have better products."Critics responded even before Trump signed his order Monday morning, arguing that the changes the president seeks could stifle innovation, won't necessarily help improve patients' access to medicine, and could put at risk pharmaceutical companies' plans to do more of their work in the United States."Importing foreign prices will cut billions of dollars from Medicare with no guarantee that it helps patients or improves their access to medicines,” Stephen Ubl, president and chief executive officer of the PhRMA trade association, said in a statement to the Associated Press. "It jeopardizes the hundreds of billions our member companies are planning to invest in America, making us more reliant on China for innovative medicines."Trump signed a similar executive order in the waning days of his first term in the White House, but it was more focused on Medicare and was blocked from taking effect by a court order. White House officials said Monday that Trump's new order is more broad.The Center for Health Information and Analysis reported in March that health care spending in Massachusetts grew at an 8.6 percent rate from 2022 to 2023, more than twice the 3.6 percent benchmark. Center for Health Information and Analysis researchers dubbed the 2023 growth rate "unsustainable" as they pointed to increased pharmacy spending as one of the major drivers.Pharmacy spending increased $1 billion or 10 percent year over year (net of rebates) from 2022 to 2023. The Massachusetts Legislature and Governor Maura Healey late last year enacted a pair of new health policy laws, including one aimed at reining in prescription drug costs.Massachusetts House Speaker Ronald Mariano said in March that the House plans to revisit some of its initiatives that didn't make it into last year's pharmaceutical law, including requiring insurance companies to count any assistance a consumer receives towards their out-of-pocket spend; making permanent the ability of consumers to use drug manufacturer coupons to pay for prescriptions; and ensuring that pharmacy benefit managers pass through at least 80 percent of the discounts they negotiate directly to consumers."We wanted to include, and we will include, we're coming back to work on this," he said.
Michael P NortonState House News Service.President Donald Trump said the executive order he signed Monday morning will reduce prescription drug prices by 30 percent to 80 percent "almost immediately," though the text itself and White House officials describe a more involved process that is less certain to lead to price reductions.Policy analysts have flagged prescription drug costs and utilization as a driver of health care cost increases in Massachusetts and across the United States. The high cost of prescriptions has been one of the most intractable problems for policymakers here to address and the escalating prices combined with huge demand for expensive weight loss drugs is driving up costs across the health care system."For many years the World has wondered why Prescription Drugs and Pharmaceuticals in the United States States of America were SO MUCH HIGHER IN PRICE THAN THEY WERE IN ANY OTHER NATION, SOMETIMES BEING FIVE TO TEN TIMES MORE EXPENSIVE THAN THE SAME DRUG, MANUFACTURED IN THE EXACT SAME LABORATORY OR PLANT, BY THE SAME COMPANY??? It was always difficult to explain and very embarrassing because, in fact, there was no correct or rightful answer," Trump wrote in a social media post Sunday night.White House officials said the United States accounts for 5 percent of the world's population but about 75 percent of the world's pharmaceutical profits. They said the idea behind Trump's order is that American patients and taxpayers have been footing the bill for global research and development by paying higher prices for prescription drugs, and that drug companies should give the United States prices at least as favorable as what they charge from health systems in other countries."Our Country will finally be treated fairly, and our citizens Healthcare Costs will be reduced by numbers never even thought of before. Additionally, on top of everything else, the United States will save TRILLIONS OF DOLLARS," the president posted.The executive order declares that Americans must have access to "the most-favored-nation price" for prescription drugs and biologics. That would mean that the United States would pay the same price as whichever nation pays the lowest price for a drug. Trump's order, however, does not mandate anything of drug companies and instead requests that they lower their prices under threat of further government action.White House officials told reporters Monday, May 12 that the executive action will unfold along a few fronts.First, the U.S. Trade Representative and the U.S. Department of Commerce are directed to take "all necessary and appropriate action" against unreasonable and discriminatory policies in foreign countries that suppress drug prices abroad. U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr., who joined Trump for a Monday morning event on the order, is directed to facilitate direct-to-consumer sales at "most-favored-nation" prices for drugs deemed appropriate.Within 30 days, Kennedy is to set nonbinding targets for prescription drug price reductions across all markets of the United States. He is then to "communicate most-favored-nation price targets to pharmaceutical manufacturers to bring prices for American patients in line with comparably developed nations," the order says.There is nothing in the order compelling drug companies to honor those prices, but White House officials said Kennedy's actions are expected to lead to a round of negotiations between the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the pharmaceutical industry."[S]hould drug manufacturers fail to offer American consumers the most-favored-nation lowest price, my Administration will take additional aggressive action," Trump's order says. It later specifies that the additional action could include regulatory action to impose most-favored-nation pricing or a ruling that could allow for low-cost drugs to be imported from other countries.Kennedy said Monday that Americans spend $1,126 per capita on drugs, while that number is $240 in Britain. He suggested drug prices in other parts of the world will have to increase markedly to satisfy Trump's new executive order."President Trump is saying to our European partners, is you got to raise the amount that you're paying for those drugs and pay for your share of the innovation, that the United States is no longer subsidizing that," Kennedy said. "If the Europeans raise the price of their drugs by just 20 percent that is $10 trillion that can be spent on innovation and the health of all people all across the globe is going to increase because we're going to have better products."Critics responded even before Trump signed his order Monday morning, arguing that the changes the president seeks could stifle innovation, won't necessarily help improve patients' access to medicine, and could put at risk pharmaceutical companies' plans to do more of their work in the United States."Importing foreign prices will cut billions of dollars from Medicare with no guarantee that it helps patients or improves their access to medicines,” Stephen Ubl, president and chief executive officer of the PhRMA trade association, said in a statement to the Associated Press. "It jeopardizes the hundreds of billions our member companies are planning to invest in America, making us more reliant on China for innovative medicines."Trump signed a similar executive order in the waning days of his first term in the White House, but it was more focused on Medicare and was blocked from taking effect by a court order. White House officials said Monday that Trump's new order is more broad.The Center for Health Information and Analysis reported in March that health care spending in Massachusetts grew at an 8.6 percent rate from 2022 to 2023, more than twice the 3.6 percent benchmark. Center for Health Information and Analysis researchers dubbed the 2023 growth rate "unsustainable" as they pointed to increased pharmacy spending as one of the major drivers.Pharmacy spending increased $1 billion or 10 percent year over year (net of rebates) from 2022 to 2023. The Massachusetts Legislature and Governor Maura Healey late last year enacted a pair of new health policy laws, including one aimed at reining in prescription drug costs.Massachusetts House Speaker Ronald Mariano said in March that the House plans to revisit some of its initiatives that didn't make it into last year's pharmaceutical law, including requiring insurance companies to count any assistance a consumer receives towards their out-of-pocket spend; making permanent the ability of consumers to use drug manufacturer coupons to pay for prescriptions; and ensuring that pharmacy benefit managers pass through at least 80 percent of the discounts they negotiate directly to consumers."We wanted to include, and we will include, we're coming back to work on this," he said.
