President Donald Trump issued a stern ultimatum Thursday to the leaders of 17 major pharmaceutical companies, demanding they cut drug prices for American consumers or face consequences using “every tool in our arsenal.”
In a series of letters posted to Truth Social, Trump directly addressed executives including Albert Bourla of Pfizer, Robert Davis of Merck, Joaquin Duato of Johnson & Johnson, and Pascal Soriot of AstraZeneca.
“Make no mistake: a collaborative effort towards achieving global pricing parity would be the most effective path for companies, the government, and American patients,” Trump wrote. “But if you refuse to step up, we will deploy every tool in our arsenal to protect American families from continued abusive drug pricing practices.”
The letters urged the CEOs to adopt “most-favored-nation” pricing, which would align U.S. drug prices with those in other developed countries. Data cited by the White House shows that brand-name drugs in the U.S. cost up to three times more than in similar nations.
Trump also called on the companies to apply his reduced pricing plan to all Medicaid patients and to guarantee lower prices on all new drugs. He gave the companies a deadline of September 29 to implement the changes.
In May, Trump signed an executive order instructing federal agencies to develop the most-favored-nation pricing model aimed at stopping “global freeloading” and “price discrimination” against American patients. If the pharmaceutical companies fail to comply, the order promises “additional aggressive action.”
According to the executive order, the U.S. represents less than 5% of the world’s population but contributes about 75% of global pharmaceutical profits.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz are standing by to enforce the changes if the companies agree, Trump said.
“Americans are demanding lower drug prices, and they need them today,” he added. “Other nations have been freeloading on U.S. innovation for far too long; it is time they pay their fair share.”
