Three medications join the self-pay platform
The White House added three prescription drugs to TrumpRx on Friday, expanding the self-pay platform that launched in January as part of the administration's effort to lower drug prices. The three medications, all from German drugmaker Boehringer Ingelheim, are Jentadueto and Jentadueto XR for Type 2 diabetes, plus Striverdi Respimat for COPD. Boehringer Ingelheim is the ninth drugmaker to join the platform.
Steep discounts for cash-pay patients
The diabetes drugs typically list at about $525 but are priced on TrumpRx starting around $55. The COPD drug is listed at about $35, down from roughly $276. Ben Link, a contributor at 46brooklyn, a nonprofit group that tracks prescription drug prices, said the discounts are substantial. Even for Jentadueto, which has a cheaper generic version available at pharmacies for $25 to $35, the TrumpRx price remains competitive with other discount sites.
Limited reach and awareness
TrumpRx has faced criticism for its narrow scope since launch, with fewer than 60 drugs listed and discounts that cannot be used with insurance or applied toward deductibles. A survey published last week by KFF found that about a third of people taking prescription drugs had heard something about TrumpRx, and just 7% of those had visited the site to compare prices. Chris Klomp, a senior Department of Health and Human Services official, said at STAT News' Breakthrough Summit East on Thursday that TrumpRx was never meant to be used by people with health insurance, but rather as a limited cash-pay tool.
The broader affordability crisis
A West Health-Gallup poll published Monday found that about 1 in 3 U.S. adults say they made trade-offs to afford health care in the past year, including rationing or skipping medications. High deductible plans leave many insured patients facing substantial out-of-pocket costs, a gap the TrumpRx platform does not address.
