The Trump administration is expected to announce this week a deal with drugmakers Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk to lower the prices of their obesity drugs sold through TrumpRX.
The agreement, which could be announced Thursday, would reduce the cost of Eli Lilly’s Zepbound and Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy to as little as $149 a month, according to media reports. In exchange, Medicare would cover the cost of the drugs for some Medicare beneficiaries.
The medicines would also be available through TrumpRX, the website that the White House plans to launch in a couple of months to make prescription drugs available at prices negotiated by the government.
A White House spokesperson declined to comment, referring to remarks made by White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt at Tuesday’s briefing. Ms. Leavitt declined to confirm the planned announcement, but said a deal that cuts the cost of the obesity drugs was “something that the administration has been engaged and looking into.”
A spokesperson for Novo Nordisk said the company is “engaged in constructive discussions with the administration regarding the Most Favored Nation executive order,” which directs drugmakers to offer their medicines in the U.S. at the far cheaper overseas prices.
In a statement, an Eli Lilly spokesperson said the company is in “discussions with the administration to further expand patient access, preserve innovation and promote affordability of our medicines.”
It’s not clear if the $149 price would apply to both private and public insurance, or which Medicare patients would qualify for coverage. Details of the plan have yet to be finalized.
The deal is potentially the most significant agreement to emerge from Mr. Trump’s effort to lower prescription drugs by tying their prices to those in other developed nations. Zepbound and Wegovy currently carry list prices above $1,000 a month, although both companies have offered discounts for customers paying in cash.
Costco recently announced that it would sell Wegovy and the diabetes drug Ozempic for $499 to people without insurance. Eli Lilly struck a similar deal with Walmart for Zepbound.
Mr. Trump last month said his administration was close to a deal to lower the cost of weight loss drugs.
“Instead of $1,300, you’ll be paying about $150,” he said.
• Jeff Mordock can be reached at jmordock@washingtontimes.com.
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