Trump’s pharma tariffs could raise drug prices for consumers, but exemptions may blunt impact

Analysts are already warning that U.S. consumers could see higher prices due to new tariffs President Donald Trump plans to impose on drug product imports as soon as next week

Analysts are already warning that U.S. consumers could see higher prices due to new tariffs President Donald Trump plans to impose on drug product imports as soon as next week.

But a series of exemptions may blunt the ultimate impact.

In a Truth Social post late Thursday, Trump said that any branded or patented pharmaceutical products brought into the U.S. would face a 100% tariff starting Oct. 1.

U.S. imports of pharmaceuticals totaled about $213 billion in 2024, a threefold increase from a decade earlier, according to data from the United Nations Comtrade Database.

With Asia alone accounting for just over 20% of those imports by value, U.S. consumers could see a “meaningful commercial hit,” Louise Loo, head of Asia economics at Oxford Economics research group, said in a note to clients.