AstraZeneca has reached an agreement with Donald Trump’s administration to lower the cost of some of its medicines in exchange for tariff relief.
Under the deal, the British pharmaceutical giant will sell certain drugs at discounted “most-favored-nation” prices to the US Medicaid program, matching the lowest rates offered in other developed countries.
Trump announced the agreement at the White House on Friday, calling it a step toward ending America’s “outrageously high” drug prices. “This may bring prices to the lowest anywhere in the world,” he claimed.
AstraZeneca’s CEO, Pascal Soriot, who attended the event, said the negotiations were intense and that Trump’s team had “kept me up at night.”
The arrangement mirrors a similar deal struck with Pfizer last week. Both companies agreed to reduce prices in return for avoiding the 100% tariffs Trump had threatened to impose on pharmaceutical imports.
More than 70 million low-income Americans rely on Medicaid, but experts say the savings from the new deal may be modest. “AstraZeneca doesn’t have a lot of drugs where this would mean huge discounts,” said Craig Garthwaite of Northwestern University.
Health economists also questioned Trump’s exaggerated claim that prices could fall by “up to 1,000%.” Analysts pointed out that such a reduction is mathematically impossible, as it would mean drugmakers paying patients to take their medicines.
Despite skepticism over the deal’s real-world impact, AstraZeneca will likely avoid new tariffs, while the administration can tout progress on lowering prices.
“This is good for the companies,” said Rena Conti of Boston University. “But the benefits for Americans struggling to afford their prescriptions remain highly uncertain.”
