President Donald Trump announced he will be signing an executive order Monday to ensure the Americans pay the "lowest price anywhere in the world" for prescription drugs and pharmaceuticals.
"I will be instituting a most favored nation's policy whereby the United States will pay the same price as the nation that pays the lowest price anywhere in the world," Trump announced.
His full post Sunday night:
For many years the World has wondered why Prescription Drugs and Pharmaceuticals in the United 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. The Pharmaceutical/Drug Companies would say, for years, that it was Research and Development Costs, and that all of these costs were, and would be, for no reason whatsoever, borne by the "suckers" of America, ALONE.
Campaign Contributions can do wonders, but not with me, and not with the Republican Party. We are going to do the right thing, something that the Democrats have fought for many years.
Therefore, I am pleased to announce that Tomorrow morning, in the White House, at 9:00 A.M., I will be signing one of the most consequential Executive Orders in our Country's history.
Prescription Drug and Pharmaceutical prices will be REDUCED, almost immediately, by 30% to 80%. They will rise throughout the World in order to equalize and, for the first time in many years, bring FAIRNESS TO AMERICA!
I will be instituting a MOST FAVORED NATION'S POLICY whereby the United States will pay the same price as the Nation that pays the lowest price anywhere in the World.
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.
Thank you for your attention to this matter. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!
Trump teased it as the "most important and impactful" Truth post in his history.
"My next TRUTH will be one of the most important and impactful I have ever issued. ENJOY!" he wrote about two hours for the reveal.
His proposal would likely only impact certain drugs covered by Medicare and given in an office — think infusions that treat cancer, and other injectables. But it could potentially bring significant savings to the government.
Medicare provides health insurance for roughly 70 million older Americans. Complaints about U.S. drug prices being notoriously high, even when compared with other large and wealthy countries, have long drawn the ire of both parties, but a lasting fix has never cleared Congress.
Under the planned order, the federal government would tie what it pays pharmaceutical companies for those drugs to the price paid by a group of other, economically advanced countries — the so-called "most favored nation" approach.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick had teased this announcement late last month in a Newsmax exclusive.
"The United States of America pays for drugs, and the rest of the world free rides," Lutnick told "Rob Schmitt Tonight" in an exclusive sit-down. "You know how you can understand the rest of the world?
"We pay for the drug, and they pay the copay.
"They're paying like the $10, $20, $30."
The proposal will face fierce opposition from the pharmaceutical industry.
It was a rule Trump tried to adopt during his first term, but could never get through. He signed a similar executive order in the final weeks of his presidency, but a court order later blocked the rule from going into effect under the Biden administration.
A report by the Trump administration during its first term found that the U.S. spends twice as much as some other countries in covering those drugs. Medicare Part B drug spending topped $33 billion in 2021.
Information from The Associated Press was used to compile this report.