{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.gallego.senate.gov/news/press-releases/gallego-presses-eli-lily-novo-nordisk-on-secret-trump-drug-pricing-deal/", "Gallego Presses Eli Lily, Novo Nordisk on Secret Trump Drug Pricing Deal", "2025-11-18", "2025", "2025-11", "Democrat", "Senate", "AZ", "Ruben Gallego", "G000574", "www.gallego.senate.gov", "gallego", "https://www.gallego.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON \u2013 Today, Senator Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) called on drug manufacturers Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk to clarify the companies\u2019 agreement with the Trump administration on anti-obesity medications (AOMs), direct to consumer pricing through the TrumpRx drug purchasing platform, and the implementation of \u201cMost Favored Nation\u201d (MFN) pricing in Medicaid.\n\nREAD MORE: Gallego demands answers on Eli Lilly\u2019s deal with Trump (The Hill)\n\n\u201cTo date, only sparse details have been provided despite the significance of this arrangement for millions of patients,\u201d Senator Gallego wrote in letters to Eli Lilly Chair and CEO David Ricks and Novo Nordisk CEO Mike Doustdar. \u201cWhile I support the expansion of Medicare coverage for anti-obesity medications, it raises concern that few details about this deal have been made public, and that in return for this arrangement, Eli Lilly will receive a three-year exemption from Section 232 tariffs.\u201d\n\nThe Trump Administration says this deal will make drugs like Zepbound and Mounjaro more affordable. Yet based on publicly available information, substantial questions remain, particularly given that Medicare is already negotiating prices for these medications, and it\u2019s not clear how this new deal fits within existing law and the TrumpRx platform\u2019s requirement that patients forgo insurance coverage and pay out-of-pocket.\n\n\u201cAs currently described, TrumpRx would require patients to bypass their insurance and pay cash for medications \u2014 often at high out-of-pocket costs. Given that many insured patients already have lower copays or coinsurance than the proposed TrumpRx discounts, it is unclear how this platform would provide meaningful relief. In fact, it may increase costs for patients,\u201d the Senator continued. \u201cGiven the significant implications for patients who rely on these medications, it is essential that the details of these agreements be made public.\u201d\n\nGallego asked the companies to clarify:\n\nThe full list of drugs that will be subject to MFN pricing;\n\nWhich comparator countries and pricing benchmarks will be used to determine MFN prices, and whether the companies will publicly disclose the final formula, including discounts or confidential rebate agreements;\n\nHow frequently MFN pricing will be updated, and whether changes will be automatic as international pricing data shifts;\n\nWhether the companies will commit to not shifting costs onto private insurance markets, employer plans, or Medicare to recoup any revenue loss;\n\nPlans to expand MFN or TrumpRx-style pricing to commercial markets;\n\nHow this arrangement will change Medicare coverage for AOMs, including which individuals are newly eligible for coverage;\n\nHow the Trump Administration arrived at the $245 price point for AOMs in Medicare and Medicaid; and\n\nA dose-by-dose price schedule for Zepbound and Mounjaro on TrumpRx, and assurances that patients will not face dramatic price spikes as they move to clinically effective maintenance doses.\n\nRead the letter to Eli Lily HERE.\n\nRead the letter to Novo Nordisk HERE.\n\nLast month, Gallego also called on Pfizer and Astrazeneca to clarify similar questions about the companies\u2019 pricing metrics that will be used in the MFN formula and what the full scope of drugs subject to MFN pricing in Medicaid will be.\n\n11/18/25", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T19:52:45Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.gallego.senate.gov/news/press-releases/gallego-presses-eli-lily-novo-nordisk-on-secret-trump-drug-pricing-deal/"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.662163995206356, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}