At first glance, the website the Trump administration launched on Feb. 5 appears to be a solid effort to address the health care affordability crisis affecting millions of Americans. Dubbed “TrumpRx.gov,” the cost-free, government-run website is intended to help people without health insurance afford prescription drugs.
“You’re going to save a fortune,” President Donald Trump said at the site’s unveiling. “And this is also so good for overall health care.”
Not quite.
A site with big claims — and major limits
Several health care advocates say TrumpRx resembles — though falls short of — more established discount drug platforms. Those sites, experts say, often provide lower prices on a broader range of medications, including generics, with fewer restrictions.
TrumpRx directs users to drugmakers’ websites offering direct-to-consumer pricing. Like those platforms, TrumpRx also provides coupons that consumers can use at pharmacies.
Currently, individuals can purchase 43 medications, including weight-loss drugs such as Ozempic and Wegovy. The site also lists several fertility medications, insulin products, two brands of asthma rescue inhalers and others.
“Mostly, I think it’s just fuzzy math and no real benefit to the American public. There are 43 drugs on TrumpRx, and you have to purchase them with cash, without insurance,” said Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine. Emanuel is an oncologist and a widely cited expert in health policy and bioethics.
Trump “championed the fact that we were reducing the prices on Wegovy and those GLP-1 drugs down to $199 per month,” Emanuel said during a press briefing Tuesday. “That actually works out to $2,400. Most Americans cannot afford $2,400 a year on one drug.”
Uninsured patients should shop around
At the same time, “more than half of the drugs on TrumpRx are actually cheaper not going through TrumpRx, but getting them through GoodRx or Mark Cuban’s Cost Plus Drug program,” Emanuel said. That’s because many “are generics, and you can get them cheaper … so he’s cutting brand names when there’s already a cheaper alternative.”
An analysis by the medical news outlet STAT found that generic versions of at least 18 drugs cost less on GoodRx or Cost Plus Drugs than the brand-name versions listed through TrumpRx. In some cases, consumers using generics could save hundreds of dollars by choosing other platforms.
Consumers with private insurance or government-funded coverage, including Medicare, generally cannot use TrumpRx discounts. Users must confirm they are not enrolled in government-funded medical or prescription programs and agree not to apply purchases toward insurance deductibles or seek reimbursement.
TrumpRx is part of the administration’s Most Favored Nation drug pricing initiative. The policy aims to align certain U.S. drug prices with the lowest prices charged in other countries. The administration has also continued implementing a Biden-era law allowing Medicare to negotiate prices for select prescription drugs.
Last year, the president issued an executive order calling on pharmaceutical companies to lower prices. Since then, several major drugmakers have reduced prices on some medications and expanded U.S. manufacturing operations.
GoodRx and Cost Plus Drugs also offer programs for uninsured consumers. GoodRx allows users to compare pharmacy prices and use coupons. Cost Plus Drugs sells medications at the manufacturer’s price plus a small fee — often lower than traditional retail pricing, particularly for generics.
This story originally appeared here.