WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Donald Trump on Friday signed four executive orders aimed at reducing the prices Americans pay for prescription drugs as he faces a tough re-election battle and criticism for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
United States President Donald Trump signs executive orders to cut drug prices when two guests celebrate behind him in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building at the White House in Washington, USA, 24 of July 2020. REUTERS / Leah Millis
One order would allow the legal importation of cheaper prescription drugs from countries like Canada, while another would require discounts from pharmaceutical companies now captured by intermediaries to pass on to patients, Trump said.
Another measure seeks to cut insulin costs, while a fourth, which may not be implemented if talks with drug companies are successful, would require Medicare to buy drugs at the same price that other countries pay, Trump said.
Trump has previously proposed most of the changes made to the executive orders he signed on Friday, but this is the first time they have done so in signed executive orders.
Executives from major pharmaceutical companies have requested a meeting to discuss how drug prices can go down, the president said.
“We will see what those discussions indicate, but the agency is prepared to move forward,” said Medicare chief Seema Verma.
The orders received swift rejection from the pharmaceutical industry, which said the measure would slow its development of new drugs to combat COVID-19.
“Today’s administration’s proposal is a reckless distraction that is impeding our ability to respond to the current pandemic, and what we may face in the future,” said a pharmaceutical lobby and manufacturers of America lobbying group. industry.
Trump has repeatedly called for reducing the cost of prescription drugs, but Congress has yet to pass a major drug price reform.
Many of the administration’s past efforts to cut drug prices, including its plan to compel insurers and other health care payers to pass reimbursements to patients, have stalled amid the industry pullback. .
“Reviving a reimbursement reform proposal now fails to address the underlying flaws: that it will dramatically increase Medicare premiums for America’s most vulnerable and elderly,” the Pharmaceutical Care Administration Association, whose members negotiate reimbursements, said in a statement. for health care payers with drug manufacturers.
Trump is under fire over the growing cases of coronavirus in the United States and harassed by the decrease in the number of polls before the November 3 elections. On Friday, he also said the White House would propose a health bill soon but offered few details.
Drug manufacturers often negotiate discounts or discounts on their list prices in exchange for favorable treatment by insurers. As a result, insurers and covered patients rarely pay the full list price of a drug.
Report by Jeff Mason; Written by Alexandra Alper; Editing by Jonathan Oatis, Peter Henderson and Tom Brown
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