E-DRUG: Trump comments on 'low prices' of US Pharma drugs outside US -'unfair'(3)
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Kris, Bonnie and e-drug,
Blaming "low" medicine prices in other countries for high prices in the United States is Trump administration messaging strategy and now, policy. It is probably the administration's leading polemic about why prices are high. The White House Council of Economic Advisers (CEA) report on drug pricing released last week lays this out
along with administration speeches and leaked documents last year.
This is important for us to know. It is a cynical move; taking advantage of suffering and anger in the United States at treatment rationing and financial hardship to prop up pharma globally, and still doing little to lower prices at home.
We haven't seen evidence for why prices would change in the U.S. if they were raised abroad, and it's hard to identify reason they would.
Here's some short analysis on the subject: https://www.citizen.org/system/files/case_documents/trump-drug-pricing-eo-trade-and-monopolies-memo.pdf.
The CEA report refines the Trump Administration position to focus on OECD countries. (I've been half-relieved by this -- it suggests that developing countries won't be the primary focus of U.S. government anger, though we will be monitoring). This has been accompanied by ratcheted up attention to OECD and upper middle-income countries from the U.S. Trade Representative and PhRMA. Those countries should expect more trade and political pressure than ever from Washington to change their affordable medicine policies for as long as Trump is in office.
We are working this problem stateside. Most people living in the United States have a negative view of pharma and want to see the industry disciplined. We are fighting a great deal of money and lobbying power.
As you may know, a number of our allies are fighting the problem globally. There are working groups on it. Let us know if we can help connect you.
Thank you,
Peter, Public Citizen, Washington
Peter Maybarduk <pmaybarduk@citizen.org>