Trump announces ‘TrumpRx’ site for discounted drugs and deal with Pfizer to lower prices
However, several drug industry experts threw cold water on the idea of consumers getting better deals via TrumpRx.
“New Trump drug website is likely irrelevant as few will pay out of pocket” unless there are changes in insurance policies, Chris Meekins, managing director of health policy research at Raymond James, wrote in a note to clients.
Most of the medicines the White House touted don’t appear to be used very often in the US, Stacie Dusetzina, a professor of health policy at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, told CNN. Xeljanz, which is used for rheumatoid arthritis, appears to be an outlier, Dusetzina said, but noted it appears likely to face generic competition beginning next year – meaning lower-priced copies could soon be available.
Moreover, the drug’s list price exceeds $6,000 a month, according to Pfizer. The White House said the TrumpRx discount will be 40%, meaning patients could then pay about $3,600 a month for the drug.
“How is this a reasonable cash price?” Dusetzina said. “It really isn’t.”
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