Pfizer escapes tariffs after TrumpRx discount deal

Pfizer Inc. Chief Executive Albert Bourla said the company secured a three-year grace period from President Trump's promised tariffs on pharmaceuticals in a deal that would lower some of the company's U.S. drug prices.

- BY DAMIAN GARDE, RACHEL COHRS ZHANG AND HADRIANA LOWENKRON

PFIZER's Albert Bourla with President Trump as Robert F. Kennedy Jr., left, and Mehmet Oz look on.

(WIN MCNAMEE Getty Images)

Pfizer will sell some drugs at a 50% average discount on a direct-to-consumer website called TrumpRx, an initiative intended to allow Americans to pay for prescriptions at discounted rates negotiated by the government.

The deal appears to resolve two major threats facing Pfizer. It would stave off more damaging drug pricing policies while shielding the company from future tariffs imposed by the administration's Section 232 investigation into whether the cost of medicine represents a national security threat.

It's the latest example of the transactional nature of winning tariff exemptions from Trump, who has unilaterally wielded trade policy to exert power over multiple industries. As recently as last week, Trump threatened 100% tariffs on the pharma industry.

Pfizer shares rose as much as 5.6% after the tariff relief was announced, touching a session high. The stock had declined 10% this year through Monday's close, trailing the Standard & Poor's 500 Index's 13% gain.