Trump announced a system with a pfizer regarding the reduction of drug prices. Even by … 1000 percent?

US President Donald Trump and the head of Pfizer Albert Bourla announced on Tuesday an agreement on reducing the prices of prescription drugs as part of the Trump initiative to level prices in the US to those in other countries. Trump claimed that similar contracts with other concerns would reduce prices even by “1000 percent”.

As the president announced, according to the new agreement, Pfizer will reduce the prices of a number of prescription drugs and will sell all new products in the US at prices used in other developed countries.

The head of the Food and Medicine (FDA) Agency Marta Makara said that this is the first of many similar agreements that will dramatically lower prices in the USA. As an example, he gave, among others 80 % reduction in dermatitis, 85 % for osteoporosis, or 50 % for arthritis. These drugs can be ordered through a website created by the White House called “Trumprx”.

However, the US president himself stated that the reductions would reach 1000 percent, which is mathematically impossible.

The contract with Pfizer is the result of the initiative and the Trump's decree signed in May, under the threat of, among others imposition of duties, pharmaceutical companies equalizing American drug prices to the lowest prices used in other industrialized countries. Trump wanted companies to compensate for US reductions in the world.

– In fact, we compete with the world where there are more people, so the prices will fall significantly, and in the world they will go a little up – explained the president.

– Over the years, other rich countries have refused to pay the part due for medical innovations – added Pfizer's head Albert Bourla. “As a result, Americans had to incur disproportionately high costs,” he added.

The US president and his team announced that Pfizer will be just one of many companies that will go to the system with the administration, mentioning, among others Eli Lilly.

-We conclude contracts with all of them and I said that if we do not conclude a contract, we will impose an additional duty on them in the amount of 50-60-70-80 percent, depending on the price difference-said Trump. He also assessed that Tuesday's agreement is one of the most important in history.

From Washington Oskar Górzyński (PAP)

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