Trump scores major victory as AstraZeneca joins Pfizer in lowering US drug prices

President Donald Trump scored a major victory Friday as AstraZeneca agreed to lower the price of its prescription drugs for Medicaid — a move that follows a similar deal struck by Pfizer and marks a pivotal point in the administration’s push for more affordable drugs.

According to P.A.The agreement, made public at an event in the White House Oval Office, commits AstraZeneca to charging “most favored nation” rates for Medicaid.

This means the company will offer the lowest drug prices offered in other wealthy countries.

Trump welcomed the deal, saying it could lead to U.S. prices becoming “the lowest prices in the world.”

AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot joined Trump for the announcement. Ironically, he later admitted that the negotiations had been intense: the president and his team “really kept me up at night.”

Under the new agreement, AstraZeneca will also guarantee the price standard for the newly launched drugs.

The move follows Pfizer’s recent settlement with the administration. Both deals build on an executive order signed by Trump in May: Drugmakers were given the option to voluntarily lower their prices or face stricter limits on what the government will pay.

Trump touts $4.5 billion AstraZeneca deal

Trump lashed out at AstraZeneca’s initial resistance, joking: “The tariffs were one of the main reasons he came here.”

The president also highlighted AstraZeneca’s commitment to increasing production in the United States by announcing the construction of a new $4.5 billion manufacturing plant in Virginia, which is only part of a $50 billion investment plan through 2030.

This facility alone is expected to create approximately 3,600 jobs in the United States.

AstraZeneca, based in Cambridge, United Kingdom, produces treatments such as Tagrisso for lung cancer, Lynparza for ovarian cancer and Calquence for leukemia, together generating more than $7.5 billion in U.S. sales last year.

Although the announcements were welcomed by advocates of lowering drug costs, some experts warn that it could be risky to pin all hopes on drugmakers without stronger U.S. policy to support them.

Questions remain about how much patients and states will actually benefit, given that Medicaid already guarantees “best price” and most patients do not pay the full cost out of pocket. CBS News reported.

Trump also introduced a new initiative: a website called TrumpRx.gov, which will be available in January 2026.

Patients will be able to order medicines directly from Roche and AstraZeneca through the site at discounted cash prices.

Originally published on vcpost.com