Trump executive order aims to slash drug prices, possibly including weight-loss drugs

The Trump plan won't be limited to Medicare prescriptions and will also target medications covered by Medicaid and private insurance.

President Donald Trump is set to sign a sweeping executive order Monday that aims to cut prescription drug costs in the U.S. by aligning what the government pays for certain medications to the prices paid in other countries.

The order, experts say, is a reimagined and far more aggressive version of Trump’s policy during his first term to cut drug costs, which failed to take effect after a federal judge blocked it.

Like the original policy, health policy experts expect it will meet significant pushback from the drug industry.

The new order directs Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to come up with price-cutting goals within 30 days, White House officials said on a call Monday. The move will kick off a round of negotiations between Kennedy and the drug industry.

Should talks stall, Kennedy will move to enforce the “most favored nation” pricing model, capping the U.S. prices at the lowest rates paid by other wealthy nations.