Wellness Unmasked Weekly Rundown: Can President Trump's New Executive Order Really Lower Prescription Drug Prices?

In this Wellness Unmasked Weekly Rundown, Dr. Nicole Saphier discusses President Trump's significant health policy announcement on prescription drug pricing. She highlights the executive order aimed at lowering drug costs, emphasizing the financial burden on American families and the need for affordable medications. Dr. Saphier explores the "most favored nation" rule and price transparency as key components of the plan, while acknowledging potential challenges from the pharmaceutical industry. Wellness Unmasked is part of the Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Podcast Network - new episodes debut every Tuesday & Friday. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to Wellness on Mass. I'm doctor Nicole Sapphire, Board
certified physician, mom and forever truth seeker, and this is
your weekly rundown. Well, it's been a big week in
the world of health policy, and today I want to
break down one of the biggest headlines that could directly
affect your family's health but also your pocketbook. President Trump
is once again putting drug pricing front and center. On Monday,

(00:24):
he announced a renewed push to lower prescription medication through
an executive order that aims to reduce high prescription drug pricing.
So what does it mean. Well, we don't exactly know
the details yet, but here's what I do know. President
Trump's initiative to lower drug prices is a long overduy
step towards putting patients before profits. For too long, Americans

(00:45):
have paid the highest prices in the world for medications,
often having to choose between prescriptions and groceries. As a physician,
I've seen patients delay treatment, sometimes with tragic consequences, all
because of cost. So whether you agree with the politics
or not, the conversation around drug affordability is one we
desperately need, and it seems we're having it again now,

(01:06):
I say again, because this idea isn't new. Trump first
introduced a version of this policy in twenty twenty, but
it faced pushback from pharmaceutical companies and was tangled up
in litigation, and let's be honest, Biden didn't continue the efforts.
This renewed commitment could actually reignite that battle. The new plan, however,
is much wider with what I see are two main

(01:27):
focus points, the first one being ensuring Americans are not
paying more than other developed nations for their drugs. This
is the Most Favored Nation rule, which seeks to align
US drug pricing with what other developed nations pay, holding
pharmaceutical companies accountable for excessive markups to Americans. The second
focus point is it also encourages increasing price transparency, allowing

(01:50):
patients to see what drugs actually cost before they reach
the pharmacy counter, and looking into importing drugs from foreign
countries where they are sold at lower pricing, alsoing out
the middlemen, the pharmacy benefit managers and even in some
cases the insurance companies. But what exactly is covered by
those terms, It's really unclear, as is the question of

(02:10):
what measures the White House would take if unreasonable practices
are discovered, that's still to be determined. The pharmaceutical lobby
and even some economists argue that linking pricing to foreign
markets could stifle innovation. But on the other hand, many
Americans continue to ration medications or skip their prescriptions entirely
because they simply can't afford them. So what's the takeaway

(02:31):
from this? The plan will face challenges from the pharmaceutical industry, undoubtedly,
but it also underscores the need for bipartisan, long term
strategies that balance affordability with continued medical advancement. We need
something to last beyond an administration. Americans deserve better. Thanks
for tuning in to Wellness unmass on your weekly rundown

(02:52):
on America's number one podcast network, iHeart. Follow Wellness Unmasks
with doctor Nicole Sapphire and start listening on the free
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and we'll catch you next time.