Daijiworld Media Network - Washington

Washington, May 12: US President Donald Trump has announced a bold new executive order aimed at slashing prescription drug prices in the United States by as much as 30% to 80%. Sharing the news on his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump pledged to sign the order Monday morning, promising Americans “almost immediate” relief from the soaring costs of medications.

“For many years, the world has wondered why prescription drugs in the United States are so much higher in price than they are in other countries,” Trump wrote. “Sometimes being five to 10 times more expensive than the same drug, manufactured in the exact same laboratory or plant, by the same company???”

Central to the executive order is the introduction of a “most favoured nation” policy, which would require US pharmaceutical prices to match the lowest price paid by any other country for the same drug. Trump argued that this approach would correct a longstanding imbalance where Americans have been “unfairly” overcharged.

“Our country will finally be treated fairly, and our citizens’ healthcare costs will be reduced by numbers never even thought of before,” he stated.

The move is expected to significantly reduce the cost of high-priced treatments, including cancer drugs and specialty injectables. Trump also accused pharmaceutical companies of exploiting the American public by inflating prices under the guise of funding research and development.

In a controversial twist, the policy could cause drug prices in other countries to rise, as manufacturers adjust global pricing to maintain profit margins. “They will rise throughout the world in order to equalize and, for the first time in many years, bring fairness to America!” Trump declared.

Trump had proposed a similar policy during his first term, but it was blocked in court and never implemented. This time, he claimed, the rollout would be more robust, and he predicted the order would “save trillions of dollars.”