EU pharma lobby criticizes potential Trump tariffs on pharmaceuticals

An EU pharma lobby has criticized the Trump administration’s plans to impose 15% tariffs on pharmaceutical imports amid uncertainty over how the newly announced U.S.-EU trade deal targets the product group, which has historically avoided levies due to public health impact.

The response from the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries came after an official text from the White House on the deal indicated that the EU has agreed to pay 15% tariffs on products, including pharmaceuticals, when the agreement takes effect.

“Tariffs on medicines are a blunt instrument that will disrupt supply chains, impact on investment in research and development, and ultimately harm patient access to medicines on both sides of the Atlantic,” EFPIA said.

If the idea is to boost investments, rebalance trade, and enable an equitable distribution of funds for pharma R&D, “then there are more effective means than tariffs that would help, rather than hinder, global advances in patient care and economic growth, the group added.

Medicines represent the largest exports from the EU to the U.S. in terms of value, accounting for 60% of the country’s total pharma exports.

EFPIA counts U.S. drugmakers AbbVie (ABBV), Amgen (AMGN), Biogen (BIIB), Bristol Myers (BMY), Gilead (GILD), J&J (NYSE:JNJ), Eli Lilly (LLY), Merck (MRK), and Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) among its full members.

Its other full members include leading EU drugmakers such as AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN), Bayer (OTCPK:BAYZF) (OTCPK:BAYRY), Novartis (NVS), Novo Nordisk (NVO), and Sanofi (SNY).