White House launches TrumpRx as drug companies warn of sales hit

Weight-loss and fertility drugs sold by Novo Nordisk, Eli Lilly and EMD Serono are among the medicines available on Donald Trump’s direct-to-consumer drug platform that launched on Thursday evening.

TrumpRx.gov, which directs people to websites where they can find drugs at a discount, offers more than 40 medicines as part of the US president’s drive to bring down consumer costs ahead of November’s midterm elections.

Certain AstraZeneca and Pfizer drugs are also available on the website, and the White House said more would become available.

“Dozens of commonly used drugs available today are just the beginning,” Trump said on Thursday. “You’re going to save a fortune.”

All five companies last year agreed to lower US drug prices in exchange for tariff reprieves and expedited reviews for new products at the Food and Drug Administration.

Pharmaceutical companies have recently disclosed that the price negotiations with Trump have blunted their sales. Pfizer this week said its 2026 sales guidance was hurt by the “unfavourable impact” of its deal.

Novo and Lilly also said their sales had been hit by lower prices for weight-loss drugs. The duo agreed pricing deals with Trump in November.

“The launch of TrumpRx will further extend patients’ reach to Ozempic and Wegovy, including the newly approved Wegovy pill,” Novo said in a statement.

Rival Lilly said its obesity shot Zepbound and one for insulin would be listed on TrumpRx. 

The launch of TrumpRx comes amid a price war between Novo and competitors in the weight-loss market.

Telehealth company Hims & Hers said on Thursday it would sell a version of Novo’s weight-loss drug Wegovy for $49 a month in the US, compared with the Danish company’s $149 monthly rate.

Novo threatened legal action on Thursday, accusing Hims & Hers of “illegal mass compounding” and alleging that the company posed “significant risk to patient safety”.

TrumpRx also lists drugs for in vitro fertilisation sold by EMD Serono, which is owned by Germany’s Merck and is one of the world’s largest providers of fertility assistance. The company, which announced a pricing deal with Trump in October, said the cost of the drugs for a standard IVF cycle would drop 84 per cent.

“Behind every fertility treatment is a person’s hope and dream,” Miguel Fernández Alcalde, president of EMD Serono, said in a statement. “Each step and effort towards easing this burdensome journey makes a real impact for these patients.”