White House promises new action on health care that could impact drug prices

The Trump administration is planning an executive order on health care that an advisor says will “have teeth.”

According to White House advisor Kellyanne Conway, the executive order could attempt to lower drug prices by linking them to prices in other countries. The executive action could be in line with an idea President Trump floated in 2018 that would create an International Price Index for drugs.

According to a report in The Hill, leading pharma lobbyists and several GOP lawmakers have expressed opposition to the plan, saying that it goes against free-market principles. 

The president is reportedly also considering a provision that would eliminate rebates paid by pharma companies to pharmacy benefits managers, which could incentivize drugmakers to lower their prices. Although pharma companies have expressed support for that plan, insurance companies and PBMs have rallied against it, saying that it could raise premiums. 

In an interview with Fox News over the weekend, President Trump said that his administration would be signing a health care plan “within two weeks.” 

Read the Reuters report.