Trump announces price reduction in prescription drugs after reaching agreements with pharmaceutical companies Eli Lilly and Company and Novo Nordisk

President Donald Trump revealed today, through a press conference at the White House, a series of deals with pharmaceutical giants Eli Lilly and Company and Novo Nordisk, which promise to slash the costs of some of the most in-demand prescription drugs in the United States.

This initiative is part of the most ambitious measures ever pushed by the federal government to lower drug prices directly benefiting millions of Americans struggling with diabetes, obesity and heart disease.

In an announcement from the Oval Office, Trump stressed that these compacts represent "substantial relief" for American families, reducing the financial burden of essential treatments. "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," the president declared, underscoring the need to bring costs in line with other developed countries.

Drastic reductions in key diabetes and obesity drugs

The agreement focuses on two drugs with the highest annual expenditures in the U.S.: Ozempic and Wegovy from Novo Nordisk, and Zepbound and Orforglipron (pending approval) from Eli Lilly. Both are injectable treatments for adults with diabetes, heart disease, obesity and related conditions, the official White House release notes.

These reductions not only facilitate direct access to consumers, but also positively impact federal healthcare programs. Medicare and Medicaid will be able to cover these adult obesity drugs at a much lower cost to taxpayers than proposed by the Biden Administration.

Benefits extended to other essential treatments

The agreement with the pharmaceuticals goes beyond obesity and diabetes drugs, including discounts on other Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk products available through TrumpRx. For example, Emgality, a migraine treatment from Eli Lilly, will be offered at $299 per pen, a $443 discount off the list price of $742. Trulicity, a commonly used diabetes drug also from Eli Lilly, will drop to $389 per month, representing a discount of $598 from its list price of $987.

In addition, Novo Nordisk will provide common-use insulin products, such as NovoLog and Tresiba, at a price of $35 per month's supply, representing a significant discount from its previous variable but high costs.

Fair pricing commitments and revenue repatriation

As part of the agreement, Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk commit to guarantee most-favored-nation (MFN) pricing on all new drugs they bring to market.

In addition, the companies will repatriate increased foreign revenues from existing products and extend MFN pricing to all state Medicaid programs.

Along those lines, President Trump emphasized that this measure corrects a global imbalance: "The United States has less than five percent of the world’s population, yet roughly 75% of global pharmaceutical profits come from American taxpayers.”

Massive investments to strengthen U.S. production

To support these advances, both drug companies announced significant investments in U.S. manufacturing capacity, aligned with Trump's vision of ensuring secure supply chains:

These capital injections not only create jobs, but reduce import dependence and strengthen local innovation.

One step closer to MAHA: "Making America Healthy Again"

The announcement is part of Trump's promise to promote a health care system that addresses the root causes of chronic disease. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that obesity affects 40% of American adults, increasing the risk of type 2 diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, stroke and certain cancers.

Combining these transformative medicines with lifestyle changes opens up an opportunity to reverse the obesity epidemic and chronic disease crisis.