The Impact of U.S. Drug Price Reduction Policies on Korean Drug Prices and New Drug Launches

A study has found that the mostfavorednation drug pricing policy being pursued by the Donald Trump administration in the United States could affect drug prices in countries such as South Korea, rather than lowering drug prices in the U.S. The analysis was published in the international journal The Lancet, and South Korea was cited as one of the countries the U.S. often refers to as a benchmark for drug price comparisons. The researchers believed that if this policy were implemented in U.S. Medicare, it would lead to significant spending reductions. They estimated that costs could fall by tens of billions of dollars for drugs administered in hospitals and for prescription drugs dispensed at pharmacies, respectively. However, they also pointed out the possibility that, in the process of lowering drug prices in the U.S., pharmaceutical companies may raise prices in other markets such as South Korea to offset losses, or delay the launch of new drugs in some countries. The researchers also noted that this was a modelbased analysis using data rather than an actual price change.