WASHINGTON – Theโ Trump administration quietly secured agreements with several pharmaceutical companies to lower drug prices for Medicareโค beneficiaries, a โmove that mirrors and, in some cases, exceeds the price reductions achieved through the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) negotiated by the Biden administration. Novo Nordisk and Eli Lillyโ are among the companies that reached dealsโฃ with the Trump administration to voluntarily โขlower prices on certain medications, including those for diabetes and obesity.
A Novo Nordisk spokesperson stated theโฃ company “look[s] forward to additional clarity from CMSโค on how โฃpricing and coverage will work together to โsupport patient access as details are finalized.” Eli Lilly expressed a preference for the earlier voluntary deals over the IRA negotiations,โ characterizing โthe latter as “not a negotiation but a government price setting process that dose nothing to increase affordability for seniors while hindering innovation.”โข
Details surrounding the timing and duration โof โtheseโค voluntary price reductionsโค remain unclear. Spokespeople for both Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly declined to commentโค on discrepanciesโฃ between the โIRA-negotiated prices and those announced underโ the Trump administration’s agreements, the โlongevity of the voluntary lowered prices, or the impact of the IRA negotiationsโ on the confidential earlier deals.
Health economics professor โSean Sullivan of the Universityโฃ of Washington questioned the sustainability of the agreements reached under theโ Trump โฃadministration, stating, “I don’t knowโฃ how sustainable [MFN] isโฆ If they were seriousโฃ about MFN,โ they would putโข itโ in law, instead of one-off press releases.”
The developments come as Trump continuesโค to navigate resistance โฃwithin his ownโข party regarding hisโ healthcare proposals. Earlier โฃthis year, proposals to include drug pricing measures inโ a Republican reconciliation package were rejected by GOP lawmakers, and some Republicans have expressed skepticism about Trump’sโข recent Affordable Care โคact subsidy proposal.
Democrats are highlighting theโ success of the IRA in lowering drug costs. Senator Ron โWyden (D-Ore.) โstated, “Democratsโข took โขon Big Pharmaโค by giving Medicare โtheโ power to negotiate on behalf of theโ tens of millions of โseniors that โwantโข lowerโ drug prices, while every Republican voted against it. โฃToday’s proclamation is a resultโฃ of Democratic efforts โto lower health costs for older Americans.”
The IRA, signed into law in 2022, โallows Medicare to negotiate the prices of certain high-cost drugs, a power previouslyโ prohibited. The frist ten drugs selected for โnegotiation will be available at lower prices starting โคin 2026.
