By Pfizer, Team - Own work using: https://www.pfizer.com/our-visual-identity, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=98573844
By: TPS Staff
The President announced his new website called TrumpRx, as an effort to provide drugs to Americans at a price level similar to the those paid by other developed nations. The website gives people the opportunity to buy drugs straight from companies at a discounted rate, rather than through insurance.
Pfizer is the only company on board so far, pledging to offer many prescription drugs at the “most favored nation drug pricing.” The company will receive a three-year grace period from tariffs imposed on pharmaceutical companies, as long as they continue to invest in domestic manufacturing. Pfizer stated that the company would offer some drugs on the platform at discounts of 50%, possibly reaching as high as 85%.
Those without health insurance and who are well-off will benefit, but the immediate effects for those who are insured is hard to determine. The pricing difference for those already covered by private insurance, Medicare, or Medicaid is uncertain even with the potential discounts. Primarily because pharmaceutical companies already have to offer their lowest prices to Medicaid, so going through insurance could see lower prices at the counter.
Through tariffs, the administration has pushed for pharmaceutical companies to bring back domestic manufacturing, as many had moved abroad for tax advantages. This allowed companies to reap in huge profits while avoiding the high tax rates in the U.S. The president’s pressure on pharmaceutical companies has caused them to pledge millions of dollars in U.S. investments, a sign that more are expected to follow Pfizers lead in signing up.
