Trump Strikes a Good Drug Deal

WALL STREET JOURNAL

President Trump struck a deal on Monday with the U.K.’s Labour government that will raise drug prices on the other side of the pond in return for a tariff reprieve. At last a good drug deal: Both sides can claim a victory while mitigating self-inflicted damage to their countries.

The President has long complained, with some justification, that other developed countries free-ride on U.S. innovation and consumers by requiring manufacturers to sell drugs to government-run health systems at steep discounts. Drug makers then sell medicines at higher prices in the U.S. to make a profit so they can invest in new drugs.

It’s also true that Americans have access to more drugs, more quickly than people in countries where governments “negotiate” prices with manufacturers. That is, governments give manufacturers a take-it-or-leave-it payment offer. About 85% of new medicines launched between 2012 and 2021 were available in the U.S., compared to 59% in the U.K.

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