AstraZeneca has reached an agreement with Donald Trump’s administration to lower drug prices for Americans and sidestep looming US tariffs.
Under the deal, the British-based pharmaceutical giant will offer discounted prices on several medications to the Medicaid program for low-income Americans. In return, the company will receive tariff relief — a move similar to a recent arrangement between the White House and Pfizer.
“This will give us the lowest price anywhere in the world,” Trump said during the Oval Office announcement. AstraZeneca’s CEO, Pascal Soriot, who joined Trump for the event, admitted the negotiations “really kept me up at night.”
The “most-favored-nation” pricing model means AstraZeneca will match the lowest prices offered in other developed nations. It also guarantees such pricing for any newly launched drugs.
Trump claimed the deal could cut drug prices by “up to 1,000%,” a statement economists quickly dismissed as impossible. Health policy experts noted that the Medicaid program already receives the lowest drug prices in the US, suggesting any savings will likely be modest.
More than 70 million Americans are covered by Medicaid, which is jointly funded by state and federal governments. The deal does not include Medicare, which serves older adults and people with disabilities.
Trump’s threat of 100% tariffs on pharmaceutical imports reportedly pushed AstraZeneca to reach the agreement. “The tariffs were a big reason he came here,” Trump said of Soriot.
While the move may shield the company from tariffs, experts such as Boston University’s Rena Conti cautioned that the plan offers “uncertain, if any, benefit for Americans struggling with the affordability of prescription drugs.”
