Trump’s 100% Drug Tariff Could Destroy Medicine Access for Millions of Americans
On Thursday, US President Donald Trump signed a sweeping executive order threatening up to 100 percent tariffs on patented drugs, unless pharmaceutical companies reach pricing deals with his administration within months.
The order creates a 3-tier tariff system — 0 percent for companies with pricing deals building US facilities, 20 percent for builders without deals, rising sharply to 100 percent in just 4 years.
Companies are not immediately doomed — the administration set strict deadlines. Bigger companies get 120 days to negotiate, while smaller pharmaceutical firms get 180 days before the crushing 100 percent tariffs officially activate.
A senior official revealed the administration had already reached 17 pricing deals with major drugmakers, 13 already signed. But PhRMA CEO Stephen Ubl warned the tariffs could jeopardize billions in US investments.
The order landed on the first anniversary of Liberation Day — when Trump’s sweeping global tariffs crashed stock markets. The Supreme Court had already overturned those earlier tariffs just months before in February.
The order also set country-specific rates — the EU, Japan, Korea, and Switzerland face a 15 percent tariff, while the UK gets 10 percent, potentially dropping to zero under future trade agreements.
