Mr. Trump repealed the order reducing drug prices for Americans

On January 21, President Donald Trump repealed former President Joe Biden’s Executive Order 14087, issued to reduce prescription drug costs for Americans. The main content of Executive Order 14087 includes three models related to drug pricing for federal health insurance Medicare and Medicaid (a joint federal and state program that helps pay medical costs for low-income people).

The first model is Medicare’s $2 drug list. This initiative helps cap the price of some generic drugs at $2 for insurance beneficiaries, aiming to increase affordability.

The next model targets cell and gene therapies, designed to improve access to high-cost therapies for Medicaid recipients. This model aims to negotiate prices and facilitate payments for users.

Finally, there is the accelerated clinical evidence model, which focuses on accelerating approvals, delivering effective treatments through streamlining the evidence gathering process for new drugs.

In an executive order signed in 2022, Biden said too many Americans do not have the economic means to pay for prescription drugs. On average, Americans spend two to three times more on these drugs than other countries. More than 25% of patients struggle with high drug prices. Nearly 30% said they skipped doses, cut pills in half or did not buy the medication due to the high cost.

Experts say that the repeal of Decree 14087 has many potential risks. The directive for the Department of Health and Human Services to develop and test new models to reduce drug costs through the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation has been withdrawn. The move could slow or stop progress on initiatives designed to make prescription drugs more affordable.

The amount of medicine outside of insurance that people have to pay for themselves has increased. Without the implementation of new models focused on reducing costs, Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries will continue to pay out-of-pocket costs, affecting access to certain drugs.

The repeal of the decree also created a precarious situation. Experts are uncertain how the federal government will address the issue of prescription drug costs in the future. This also creates confusion for people who have bought insurance.

In the executive order, President Donald Trump said that the previous administration applied extreme, illegal, inflationary and unpopular measures to every agency and office of the federal government. .

“Repeating the executive orders will be the first of many steps the United States will take here to repair institutions and restore the economy,” Mr. Trump added.

In response to Trump’s repeal of the order, the rapid response director of the Democratic National Committee, Alex Floyd, commented that this was a “dangerous plan to increase medicine costs to appease the billionaires who supported it.” him, after the Biden-Harris administration took on big pharmaceutical companies and won”.

Although the executive order has been repealed, existing laws and regulations regarding prescription drug prices and Medicare and Medicaid policies remain in effect. However, drug price reduction efforts instituted by the previous administration have been interrupted.

According to experts, Mr. Trump’s move on January 21 was not unexpected. A major goal of his first term was also to influence the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. He reversed the policy of “extending Obamacare enrollment by 12 weeks” in 36 states.

According to Larry Levitt, vice president of the health policy executive committee at the nonprofit KFF Research Group, this move shows that the issues Mr. Trump prioritizes addressing have changed. He said Trump is “less serious” about addressing health care costs in the US.

Levitt said it’s unclear whether the Trump administration supports Medicare negotiating drug prices. This is an important provision in Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act. Last week, Medicare announced the next round of negotiations for two prescription drugs, Ozempic and Wegovy, for people with diabetes and overweight.

“Trump seems to be approaching the issue of medical costs with great caution, not aiming for larger initiatives than Biden,” said Arthur Caplan, head of medical ethics at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine. New York City, comments.