President Donald Trump stood in the White House on Friday with representatives from nine pharmaceutical giants to announce something politicians have been promising forever: actual drug price cuts. The deals aim to bring U.S. medication costs closer to what other wealthy countries pay, which is generally a lot less.
The companies signing on include Bristol Myers Squibb Co. (BMY), Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD), Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK), Genentech, Novartis AG (NVS), Amgen Inc. (AMGN), Boehringer Ingelheim, Sanofi SA (SNY), and GSK plc (GSK). That's a lot of pharmaceutical muscle in one room.
How the Deal Actually Works
Here's what these companies agreed to do: They'll cut prices on most drugs sold to Medicaid down to "most-favored-nation" pricing. That's policy-speak for matching the lowest prices charged anywhere in the world. If Germany gets a drug cheaper, Medicaid gets that price too.
But the deal goes beyond Medicaid. Companies also committed to listing medications on TrumpRx.gov, a government website that launched in 2025 where people can buy prescription drugs directly from manufacturers at steep discounts if they're paying cash. Any new drugs they launch will be priced no higher than comparable prices in other wealthy nations right out of the gate.
What do the pharmaceutical companies get in return? Three-year tariff exemptions. Trump had previously slapped tariffs on foreign-made drugs specifically to create leverage for these negotiations. Now that companies have agreed to the pricing concessions, those tariffs disappear for three years. Stick, meet carrot.
Concrete Examples of Price Cuts
Some companies got specific about their commitments. Merck said it will sell its diabetes drugs Januvia and Janumet at 70% off list prices directly to consumers. That's real money for people paying out of pocket.
Bristol Myers Squibb went even further with its blockbuster blood thinner Eliquis, promising to provide it free to Medicaid patients starting January 1, 2026. The company will also offer selected medicines at roughly 80% off list prices for cash-paying customers.
The Manufacturing Investment Component
The agreements aren't just about pricing. These nine companies collectively pledged more than $150 billion for U.S. research and development and domestic manufacturing. Merck alone committed over $70 billion to expand production facilities and innovation activities in the United States.
This is part of the administration's broader push to bring pharmaceutical manufacturing back to American soil, reducing reliance on foreign supply chains that proved problematic during recent global disruptions.
Five Companies Already In, Three More Coming
These nine companies join five others that struck similar deals earlier with the administration. Pfizer (PFE) is offering Eucrisa, Xeljanz, and Zavzpret. Eli Lilly (LLY) put up Zepbound, while Novo Nordisk (NVO) contributed Wegovy. AstraZeneca (AZN) added Airsupra and Farxiga to the list, and EMD Serono, a unit of Merck KGaA, included GONAL-F.
Trump indicated that three more major players are expected to announce deals next week: Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (REGN), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), and AbbVie Inc. (ABBV). That would bring the total to seventeen companies participating in the program.
The Mark Cuban Take
Billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban, who has his own cost-plus drug venture, gave TrumpRx.gov a "B" grade. He acknowledged the program has real potential but said it won't earn an "A" unless it forces pharmacy benefit managers to change their behavior. PBMs are the middlemen in the drug pricing system, and many critics argue they're a big part of why prescription costs are so high in the first place.
Whether this initiative actually delivers sustained savings for patients depends on implementation details that will play out over the coming months. But getting this many pharmaceutical companies to commit to transparent pricing and domestic investment in one fell swoop is notable, regardless of how you feel about the political theater surrounding it.
