President Donald Trump used a primetime White House address Wednesday night to do something politicians love to talk about but never actually do: show results. This time, the receipts came in the form of historic prescription drug price cuts under the TrumpRx program, with reductions reaching as high as 600%.
“I’m doing what no politician of either party has ever done — standing up to the special interests to dramatically reduce the price of prescription drugs,” Trump told the nation. And for once, that wasn’t just rhetoric.
Trump explained that his administration directly confronted foreign governments and pharmaceutical giants that had been overcharging Americans for decades, using the leverage of tariffs to force fair pricing. The result? Drug prices that are finally going down — not by a little, but by amounts “never conceived possible.”
Under the most-favored-nation pricing model, U.S. consumers will pay prices comparable to what other countries pay for the same medications. Trump noted that this shift officially began days ago, with the first wave of price reductions rolling out in January through a new direct-to-consumer platform, TrumpRx.gov.
Drugs have historically only moved in one direction — up. Now, Trump says, they’re plunging.
Since late September, the administration has announced a series of agreements with major pharmaceutical companies using this framework. Deals have been reached with Pfizer, AstraZeneca, EMD Serono, Eli Lilly, and Novo Nordisk, covering everything from arthritis and migraines to asthma, IVF treatments, diabetes, and weight-loss medications.
Under the Pfizer agreement finalized September 30, state Medicaid programs gained access to most-favored-nation pricing, while consumers could directly purchase medications at steep discounts. Eucrisa was slated for an 80% reduction, Xeljanz at 40% off, and migraine drug Zavzpret at 50% off list price.
An October 10 deal with AstraZeneca expanded savings to inhalers for asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. According to the White House, BEVESPI AEROSPHERE would see a discount equivalent to 654%, BREZTRI AEROSPHERE nearly 98%, and AIRSUPRA about 96% for direct purchasers. Yes, you read that right — triple-digit percentage reductions. Apparently, the prices really were that inflated.
On October 16, Trump announced an agreement with EMD Serono covering its full IVF therapy portfolio. Used together in a typical treatment cycle, eligible patients could see discounts of up to 84%, potentially saving thousands of dollars per cycle.
The most recent deals, announced last week, involved Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk. Novo Nordisk agreed to cut the monthly prices of Ozempic and Wegovy from roughly $1,000 and $1,350 down to $350, while Eli Lilly reduced Zepbound and Orforglipron from $1,086 per month to $346. For Medicare recipients, the price on those four drugs will be just $245 per month.
Novo Nordisk also agreed to offer widely used insulin products like NovoLog and Tresiba at $35 per month, while Eli Lilly reduced prices on additional treatments such as Emgality for migraines and Trulicity for diabetes by hundreds of dollars off their list prices.
For years, Americans were told nothing could be done — that drug prices were complicated, untouchable, and destined to rise forever. Trump ignored the talking points, confronted the system head-on, and forced change.
The result is lower costs, real savings, and a healthcare win that directly impacts millions of families. Turns out, when someone is actually willing to fight the special interests, things can get better — fast.
