President Donald Trump announced agreements with pharmaceutical giants Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk to slash prices on popular diabetes and weight-loss drugs.
The deals will cut monthly costs for medications like Ozempic and Wegovy from over $1,000 to $350 through a new TrumpRx program.
The agreements tackle America’s most expensive medications while addressing the obesity epidemic affecting 40% of U.S. adults. They also fulfill Trump’s campaign promise to end what he calls “global freeloading” on American pharmaceutical innovation.
Under the deals, Medicare will cover obesity drugs for the first time at a monthly cost of $245. Beneficiaries will pay just $50 in co-pays.
The price reductions extend beyond blockbuster weight-loss drugs. Eli Lilly’s migraine treatment, Emgality, drops to $299 per pen, a decrease of $443 from the list price.
Novo Nordisk will offer insulin products, including NovoLog and Tresiba, at a monthly rate of $35. Both companies are committed to matching international prices on future drugs.
“In case after case, our citizens pay massively higher prices than other nations pay for the same exact pill, from the same factory, effectively subsidizing socialism abroad with skyrocketing prices at home,” Trump said.
Americans pay three times more for brand-name drugs than other developed nations. The U.S. represents less than 5% of the global population but generates approximately 75% of the world’s pharmaceutical profits.
The agreements include major manufacturing investments. Novo Nordisk has pledged $10 billion to expand U.S. production, including the potential for end-to-end manufacturing of a Wegovy tablet.
Eli Lilly announced $27 billion in domestic manufacturing investments under Trump’s leadership. Both companies agreed to repatriate increased foreign revenue and provide state Medicaid programs access to reduced prices.
Trump signed an executive order in May directing his administration to pursue most-favored-nation drug pricing. He sent letters to pharmaceutical manufacturers in July outlining required price reductions.
Since September, the president has announced five deals with major drug companies. The latest agreements represent his most significant achievements in prescription drug pricing to date.