President Donald Trump is reportedly set to announce a new agreement with AstraZeneca Plc (NASDAQ:AZN) designed to reduce prescription drug costs for Americans.
A White House official told MSNBC that the announcement is expected to come from the Oval Office later Friday afternoon.
The deal will implement a "most-favored-nation" pricing model to lower costs for low-income patients, including those enrolled in Medicaid. This model seeks to align U.S. drug prices more closely with rates paid in other countries, officials said.
Under the plan, affected medications will be accessible through a federal website called TrumpRx.gov, providing a direct channel for patients to obtain discounted prescriptions. The site is set to launch next year.
Also Read: Trump Administration Engages Pharmacies, GoodRx For TrumpRx Launch
In September, Trump announced the first agreement with a major pharmaceutical company, Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE), to bring American drug prices in line with the lowest paid by other developed nations (known as the most-favored-nation, or MFN, price).
The White House stated that more than 100 million patients affected by diseases treated with Pfizer medicines are expected to benefit from President Trump’s successful negotiation of lower prices.
Recently, AstraZeneca launched AstraZeneca Direct for patients to have access to Airsupra (albuterol/budesonide) or Farxiga (dapaglifozin) directly for a cash price up to 70% off the list price.
Most recently, Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) launched AmgenNow, a new direct-to-patient program that begins with its cholesterol drug Repatha (evolucumab).
On Thursday, AstraZeneca said it will invest $4.5 billion in its new manufacturing facility in Virginia, a proposed increase of $500 million to support the enhanced manufacturing capability of a broader range of medicines, including cancer treatments.
AZN Price Action: AstraZeneca shares are trading down 0.38%, sitting at $84.72 at the time of publication on Friday. They're 2.1% below the 52-week high, but still 7.5% above the 50-day moving average.
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