I don't know what his claim of power is based on. Congress passes a lot of laws granting the executive to take action on its own initiative, so maybe he has some power here. Maybe he has power as the ultimate administrator of Medicaid. I don't know.
American patients first: Trump orders drugmakers to match lowest global prices
On Monday, President Trump signed an executive order aimed at slashing prescription drug prices by requiring pharmaceutical companies to offer Americans the lowest prices they charge anywhere in the world.
Key Details:
The executive order instructs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to allow Americans to purchase drugs directly from manufacturers at "Most-Favored-Nation" prices, bypassing costly middlemen.
If pharmaceutical companies refuse, the order directs HHS to impose rules mandating most-favored-nation pricing and to use "other aggressive measures" to end anticompetitive practices.
Trump blasted the current system where "Americans pay massively higher prices than other nations" and said it was effectively "subsidizing socialism abroad with skyrocketing prices at home."
Diving Deeper:
President Trump on Monday signed a major executive order designed to overhaul the way Americans pay for prescription drugs, calling the move part of his broader promise to put "American patients first." The action, according to a White House fact sheet, is intended to "bring the prices Americans and taxpayers pay for prescription drugs in line with those paid by similar nations."
The order directs the U.S. Trade Representative and the Secretary of Commerce to crack down on foreign countries that "purposefully and unfairly undercut market prices," leading to increased costs for American consumers. "We're not going to let these other countries rob us blind anymore," Trump said, according to the release. "We are the biggest buyer in the world--and it's time we got the best deal."
A central feature of the order is a new mechanism through which American patients will be able to purchase drugs directly from manufacturers at a "Most-Favored-Nation" price--meaning the lowest price those companies offer to any other developed country. By cutting out pharmacy benefit managers and other middlemen, the administration aims to bypass entrenched pricing systems that often leave American consumers paying more than their counterparts abroad.
Should pharmaceutical companies refuse to comply, the order empowers the Secretary of Health and Human Services to take further action, including proposing binding rules to mandate the lower pricing and applying other regulatory pressure to break up what the administration describes as "anticompetitive practices."
Trump underscored the need for action by citing new data that shows Americans pay more than three times as much for brand-name drugs as citizens in other developed nations, even after accounting for discounts. The White House also noted that although the U.S. represents less than 5% of the global population, it accounts for roughly 75% of all global pharmaceutical profits--due in part to "subsidizing drug-manufacturer profits and foreign health systems."
"In case after case, our citizens pay massively higher prices than other nations pay for the same exact pill, from the same factory," Trump said. "You can see some examples where the price is beyond anything--four times, five times different."
Pfizer rigged the 2020 election by delaying their discovery of a "vaccine," so I'm all out of tears for Pfizer.
How are you?