WASHINGTON, D.C.: President Donald Trump announced a deal with UK-based AstraZeneca that will see the drugmaker offer discounted medicines to the U.S. government's Medicaid program in exchange for tariff relief, part of a broader White House push to lower prescription drug prices.

The agreement mirrors a similar arrangement reached last week with Pfizer, setting what officials described as a framework for future deals with other pharmaceutical companies. Trump said he had written to 17 major drugmakers in July, demanding they cut prices or face punitive tariffs. AstraZeneca and Pfizer are the first to comply.

Under the deal, AstraZeneca will sell some medicines to Medicaid at discounts of up to 80 percent off list prices through the forthcoming TrumpRx website, which is expected to launch next year, company CEO Pascal Soriot said during an Oval Office event. In return, the company will receive a three-year exemption from new import tariffs, allowing it to "localize the remainder of our products," Soriot added.

U.S. patients currently pay the highest prescription drug prices among developed nations, nearly three times more than elsewhere. Trump has repeatedly vowed to close this gap. Last month, he threatened 100 percent tariffs on foreign-made drugs after talks with several companies stalled.

More than 70 million Americans are covered by Medicaid, which serves low-income people. Although its drug spending, roughly US$80 billion, is smaller than Medicare's $216 billion in 2021, the administration says the deal marks an early step toward broader reform.

Health policy experts were skeptical about its impact. "The Medicaid program already gets the lowest drug prices in the U.S., so that the additional savings may be modest," said Craig Garthwaite, professor at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management. "If you look at AstraZeneca's portfolio, I don't think there are a bunch of drugs that exist where that's going to involve them giving a very big discount."

Rena Conti, a health-economics professor at Boston University, said the agreement may protect AstraZeneca from tariffs but is unlikely to curb U.S. drug costs. "It's good for the companies and has very uncertain, if any, benefit for Americans struggling with affordability," she said.

AstraZeneca has worked to strengthen its U.S. ties as Trump presses global pharmaceutical companies to manufacture domestically. In July, the firm announced a $50 billion investment in American manufacturing and R&D by 2030, including its largest global facility in Virginia and expansions in five other states.

The company also said in September it would sell diabetes and asthma drugs directly to cash-paying U.S. patients at discounts of up to 70 percent, another move to align with the administration's pricing push.

Soriot emphasized AstraZeneca's growing U.S. identity, calling it a "very American company" and confirming plans to list its shares in the United States alongside existing listings in London and Europe.