Catenaa, Tuesday, September 30, 2025- Pfizer Chief Executive Officer Albert Bourla said the company secured a three-year grace period from President Donald Trump’s promised tariffs on pharmaceuticals.
Accordingly, the company will sell some products at a 50% average discount on a direct-to-consumer website called TrumpRx, an initiative intended to allow Americans to pay cash for drugs at discounted rates negotiated by the government.
The deal appears to resolve two major threats facing Pfizer, as it would stave off more damaging drug pricing policies while shielding the company from future tariffs imposed by the administration’s Section 232 investigation into whether the cost of medicine represents a national security threat.
It’s the latest example of the transactional nature of winning tariff exemptions from Trump, who has unilaterally wielded trade policy to exert power over multiple industries. As recently as last week, Trump threatened 100% tariffs on the industry.
As part of its deal, Pfizer will offer across-the-board reductions on US prices for Americans enrolled in the Medicaid insurance program, giving them “most favored nation” pricing on some of its medicines, Trump said. He has repeatedly pressured companies to bring their US prices in line with what foreign countries pay for medicines.
“The United States is done subsidizing the health care of the rest of the world,” Trump said.
Bourla also announced a $70 billion push on research and development and domestic manufacturing over the next few years.
The company was one of the rare exceptions among major drugmakers that rushed to highlight the return of manufacturing facilities to the US amid pressure from Trump.
“We now have the certainty and stability we need on two critical fronts, tariffs and pricing, that have suppressed the industry’s valuations to historic lows,” Bourla said in a statement.
Pfizer stock rose by 5% following the announcement by CEO Bourla.
