Trump says he’s taking ‘revolutionary’ action to lower prescription drug costs

Washington — President Donald Trump took his boldest action yet to lower drug prices, saying his administration is moving to stop “global freeloading” by foreign nations when it comes to the price that Americans pay for prescription drugs. The announcement is a sign that the president and his aides are seeking to shift the focus to health care two weeks before the midterm elections.

In a speech Thursday afternoon at the Department of Health and Human Services, Trump said his administration would be taking the “revolutionary” step of allowing Medicare to directly negotiate prices with drug companies who he says have “rigged” the system, causing U.S. patients to pay more for their medicines.

“Americans pay more so other countries can pay less. It’s wrong. It’s unfair,” Trump said.

Trump’s remarks were the first as president at HHS and come at a time when health care is playing a defining role in the campaign as Democrats slam Republicans over whether they support protecting access to health care for people with preexisting conditions. He argued other countries were being “very disrespectful” by selling their prescription drugs to Americans for higher prices than their own citizens are paying for them.

Under the new approach, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services plans to experiment with a new way of setting prices for most drugs administered through Medicare’s Part B program, which covers all doctor’s visits for seniors and the drugs prescribed to them during their visits.

HHS estimates the new pricing index — which the agency says would apply to 50 percent of the country — would save Medicare $17.2 billion over five years. Medicare now pays the average sales price of a medicine in the United States, plus an extra fee based on a percentage of that price.