Why are drug prices so high in America? Trump doesn't have the right answer | Susi Geiger and Theo Bourgeron

"Americans, he said, were paying far too much for medicines and it was everyone else's fault. There would be no talk of reining in private insurers or pharmaceutical profits. Instead, Trump blamed foreign governments for getting a better deal. Countries like France, Germany and Japan, he argued, were piggybacking on the United States by keeping their drug prices low. Later that day, at a rally in North Carolina, he performed an imaginary showdown with Emmanuel Macron."

"Trump is right about one thing: the US system is a public health failure. Drug prices are eye-wateringly high. Millions of Americans struggle to afford essential medicines such as insulin. Private insurers add costs without improving access. The result is a country that spends more on healthcare than anyone else, yet has lower life expectancy than many poorer nations. But Trump's explanation is wrong. Americans are not paying high prices so that European, Canadian, South Korean and Japanese citizens can enjoy cheap medicines."

"Other countries' patients and their governments do pay less than Americans, but they hardly get medicines for free. Prices for new drugs are high and rising everywhere. The real winners are the shareholders of multinational pharmaceutical companies who have enjoyed extraordinary profits, dividends and share buybacks over the past two decades more than $1,500bn between 2000 and 2018. A majority of them are US-owned. In 2024, US corporations made 49% of the top 20 big pharma revenue."

Donald Trump blamed foreign governments for low drug prices abroad, claiming countries piggyback on the United States and promising confrontations and dramatic price cuts. The US health system delivers high drug costs, leaving millions unable to afford essential medicines such as insulin, while private insurers add costs without improving access. Other countries pay lower prices but not free medicines; prices for new drugs are high and rising globally. Multinational pharmaceutical shareholders have reaped extraordinary profits, dividends and share buybacks—more than $1,500bn between 2000 and 2018—with many top firms and shareholders based in the United States.

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