In a White House ceremony that felt more like a corporate signing day, President Trump unveiled drug pricing agreements with nine of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies. The deals represent the most significant use of tariff leverage to extract domestic policy concessions—a template that could reshape how Washington negotiates with multinational corporations.

The Nine Companies

The drugmakers that signed: Amgen, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol Myers Squibb, Genentech, Gilead Sciences, GSK, Merck, Novartis, and Sanofi. Combined with earlier agreements, 14 pharmaceutical companies have now reached "most-favored-nation" pricing deals with the Trump administration.

What They're Getting

In exchange for price concessions, the companies secured a three-year grace period during which their products won't face Trump's planned pharmaceutical-specific tariffs—provided they invest in U.S. manufacturing. The nine companies committed to invest a total of more than $150 billion in new manufacturing projects and R&D in the United States.

Trump emphasized the role of tariff threats in these negotiations: "If we didn't have the use of tariffs, we would never be able to do this."

The Price Cuts

Some of the reductions are substantial:

  • Merck's Januvia (Type 2 diabetes): From $330 to $100 through TrumpRx
  • Gilead's Epclusa (Hepatitis C): From $24,920 to $2,425 through TrumpRx
  • Boehringer Ingelheim's Jentadueto (Type 2 diabetes): From $525 to $55 through TrumpRx

These discounts apply to patients purchasing directly through the TrumpRx program and to Medicaid recipients. The reductions are genuine and will help specific patient populations.

What the Deals Don't Cover

Here's the caveat that matters most: the agreements don't address high prices under private insurance or Medicare. Most Americans get their drugs through employer-sponsored insurance or Medicare Part D, where these specific discounts don't apply.

The deals also don't include everyone. Johnson & Johnson, AbbVie, and Regeneron are the three remaining major drugmakers yet to reach agreements. Their holdout suggests the negotiations aren't as one-sided as the administration's victory lap implies.

Stock Market Impact

Pharma stocks rose on the news—counterintuitive at first glance, since the companies are agreeing to lower prices. But the tariff exemptions remove a major threat. The certainty of three years without pharmaceutical tariffs outweighs the margin pressure from targeted price cuts.

Shares of Merck, Bristol Myers Squibb, Gilead Sciences, Amgen, and Novartis all gained following the announcement.

The International Angle

The administration also announced a separate agreement with the United Kingdom to increase the net price of new prescription drugs by 25% in the U.K. The framing: other countries should pay more so Americans can pay less. Whether this actually translates into lower U.S. prices remains to be seen.

The Bottom Line

Trump's pharma deals are real but limited. Specific drugs will cost less for specific populations. Companies get tariff protection and investment tax benefits. But the fundamental issue of high drug prices across the private insurance market remains unaddressed. For investors, the deals remove near-term tariff risk—and that's been enough to support pharma stocks heading into year-end.