Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) has announced that he will support President Donald Trump’s efforts to lower drug prices if he’s “serious” about the issue.
Sanders made the pledges in a press release in response to Trump’s executive order.
As Slay News reported, Trump has announced a major new executive order that slashes pharmaceutical companies’ prescription drug prices in America.
In an announcement Sunday evening, the president revealed that his order will dramatically reduce prices with immediate effect.
Trump signed the order on Monday morning before leaving for his Middle East trip.
Trump’s executive order aims to align U.S. prescription drug prices to match the lowest amount offered to other developed nations.
The plan will promote “direct-to-consumer” sales at these rates.
It will also prevent foreign countries from “freeloading” on American-funded pharmaceutical innovation.
“I agree with President Trump: It is an outrage that the American people pay, by far, the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs,” Sanders said in a press release.
“It is beyond unacceptable that we pay, in some cases, ten times more for the same exact prescription drugs than people in other major countries.
“But let’s be clear: The problem is not that the price of prescription drugs is too low in Europe and Canada.
“The problem is that the extraordinarily greedy pharmaceutical industry made over $100 billion in profits last year by ripping off the American people.”
Sanders added: “Further, as Trump well knows, his executive order will be thrown out by the courts.
“If Trump is serious about making real change rather than just issuing a press release, he will support legislation I will soon be introducing to make sure we pay no more for prescription drugs than people in other major countries.
“If Republicans and Democrats come together on this legislation, we can get it passed in a few weeks.”
Trump unveiled his executive order during a press conference at the White House.
He was joined by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
In the 2024 cycle, Kennedy ran unsuccessfully for the presidency while challenging the Democratic Party’s establishment, just like Sanders did in 2016 and 2020.
Kennedy said that Democrat leaders have promised Americans for 20 years they would lower drug prices without actually doing it.
He asserted that Trump’s effort now was the “fulcrum” of Sanders’ campaigns for the White House.
“I have a couple of kids who are Democrats, are big Bernie Sanders fans, and when I told them that this was gonna happen, they had tears in their eyes because they thought this was never going to happen in our lifetime, and we finally have a president who’s willing to stand up for the American people,” Kennedy said.
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) echoed the call for action.
Hawley is urging Congress to make Trump’s move “permanent” through legislation he introduced with Sen. Peter Welch (D-VT).
Great move by @realDonaldTrump – now Congress needs to make it PERMANENT by passing my bill to stop Big Pharma price gouging https://t.co/3xuwfTtY4Y
— Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) May 12, 2025
Their bill, the “Fair Prescription Drug Prices for Americans Act,” would keep pharmaceutical companies from charging higher drug prices in the United States than the average in Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Italy, and the United Kingdom.
It will also enforce penalties of 10 times the price difference per unit sold for violations.
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