Overview

• President Trump’s executive order aims to address high prescription drug costs through Medicare reforms, including aligning payment rates with hospital acquisition costs, potentially reducing prices by up to 35%.
• The order reinstates a program to provide low-income patients with insulin for as little as 3 cents per vial and epinephrine for $15, reviving a Trump-era initiative previously ended by the Biden administration.
• It directs the FDA to streamline approvals for generic and biosimilar drugs and encourages states to import lower-cost medications from countries like Canada.
• The administration proposes extending the timeline before small-molecule drugs become eligible for Medicare price negotiations, a move criticized as favoring pharmaceutical industry interests.
• HHS, led by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is tasked with collaborating with Congress to implement these reforms, while critics warn the changes could undermine earlier cost-saving achievements.