GSK enters pact with U.S. to lower prescription drug costs for Americans

GSK (GSK) announced that it has entered into an agreement with the U.S. Administration to lower the cost of prescription medicines for American patients, including GSK’s broad respiratory portfolio which is used to treat the more than 40 million Americans who suffer from respiratory conditions such as asthma and COPD. The agreement delivers on all four actions requested by President Trump in his July 31st letter. As part of the agreement, GSK will lower the price of certain medicines in Medicaid and will launch new products with a more balanced pricing approach which “recognizes the value of innovation across developed nations,” the company said. GSK will also make most of its inhaled respiratory portfolio and other products available to patients on a direct purchasing platform that will offer savings of up to 66%. As part of the President’s Strategic Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients Reserve, GSK will further support the resilience of the U.S. supply chain for critical medicines by securing for the U.S. a reserve of albuterol, the active ingredient used in many inhalers to relieve the symptoms of asthma and COPD. The agreements entered into cover both GSK and ViiV Healthcare. The agreements provide clarity to both companies on the future US pricing framework, and exclude GSK and ViiV from s232 tariffs for 3 years. The detailed terms of the agreements remain confidential.