Trump 2.0

Donald Trump has officially taken office as the 47th US President and already issued several executive orders, including withdrawing the US from the World Health Organization. While signing the order, Trump claimed that “World Health ripped us off.”

A statement also adds, “The United States noticed its withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2020 due to the organization’s mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic that arose out of Wuhan, China, and other global health crises, its failure to adopt urgently needed reforms, and its inability to demonstrate independence from the inappropriate political influence of WHO member states. In addition, the WHO continues to demand unfairly onerous payments from the United States, far out of proportion with other countries’ assessed payments. China, with a population of 1.4 billion, has 300 percent of the population of the United States, yet contributes nearly 90 percent less to the WHO.”

WHO members are required to give 12 months’ notice, so the official exit will be in January 2026.

The Trump administration is also rescinding what it refers to as “harmful” executive orders made during the Biden administration. Buried in the large list are Executive Order 14009 (Strengthening Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act) and Executive Order 14087 (Lowering Prescription Drug Costs for Americans). No further details have been provided on what happens next, but it has been reported that the pharma industry is hoping that Trump will “fix” the Inflation Reduction Act – potentially by pausing the Medicare price negotiation process.

Industry association PhRMA has also issued a statement calling for change. The statement says, “Over half the medicines selected for price setting by the Biden Administration are being targeted because of the ‘pill penalty’ included in the IRA, which lets the government set the price of medicines that often come in pill form much earlier than other types of medicines. The pill penalty sends a clear message to innovators to stop developing these medicines even though they may be the most effective, convenient, and lowest cost option for patients. In fact, recent research found that early-stage funding for small molecule drug development has fallen 70% since the IRA was enacted.”

However, people are also calling for Trump to stand firm on drug pricing. A letter signed by Senators Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, and Ron Wyden reads:

“We write regarding reports that the ‘drugmakers will ask the Trump administration to pause [Medicare] drug price negotiations’ soon after you take office. There is no legal basis for any pause, and allowing giant pharmaceutical companies to pressure you into one would dramatically increase costs for over 60 million Medicare beneficiaries and betray your own campaign promises. You once said that ‘[d]eals are my art form. Other people paint beautifully or write poetry. I like making deals, preferably big deals.’ You should use those skills to cut drug prices and flat out reject any request to end negotiations from giant pharmaceutical makers that have spent decades putting profits over patients.”

For now, the IRA and its Medicare price negotiation process remain in place. At the end of last week, 15 new drugs were selected for price negotiations, with the negotiated prices due to come into effect in 2027. Notably, the list includes Wegovy and Ozempic. The full list is: 

• Ozempic; Rybelsus; Wegovy 

• Trelegy Ellipta 

• Xtandi

• Pomalyst

• Ibrance

• Ofev

• Linzess

• Calquence

• Austedo; Austedo XR 

• Breo Ellipta 

• Tradjenta

• Xifaxan

• Vraylar

• Janumet; Janumet XR 

• Otezla

If you would like to write a comment about the IRA or the changes you would like to see under the Trump administration, get in touch: stephanie.vine@conexiant.com.

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