René Buholzer on Trump’s corporate deals

In an interview with Euractiv, IPH CEO René Buholzer commented on US pharmaceutical policy. You can read the original article here.

Were you surprised by the deal Pfizer struck with the US administration, under which Pfizer was exempted from tariffs in exchange for lowering prices in the US?
Buholzer: Well, Trump had written to the 17 companies individually, there were one-on-onetalks – so in that sense I expected something like this. And it was clear that something had to happen, since he had threatened 100% tariffs as of 1 October if companies didn’t lower their prices in the US.

But it seems your industry is still grappling with the new way Trump has linked tariffs and prices.
Yes, definitely. Although tariffs and prices still have different aims. Tariffs are meant to bring production back to America – and if you look at the companies’ announcements, that has indeed worked. More and more will be produced in the US for the US in the future. The other issue is the Most Favoured Nation order, which is supposed to bring US drug prices down to the level of the cheapest Western country. The key question is what this will mean for the supply of European patients, particularly Swiss patients.

Medicines will become more expensive in Europe, or not even reach the market?
Exactly. For Switzerland, this is a particular problem. Our prices for innovative medicines are relatively low. If Switzerland became a reference country for the United States, companies would hold back from launching medicines here, out of fear that the low Swiss price would then apply in the US as well. That is also an issue for the EU, but we Swiss face a double problem with Trump’s pharma policy.

Because pharma is so important to the economy?
Of all Swiss exports, pharma accounts for 40%, and 28% of that goes to the US. The industry makes a very large contribution to this country’s prosperity.

How hard could Trump’s policies hit the Swiss pharmaceutical industry?
As far as tariffs are concerned, we still don’t have more than what was in that Truth Social post. Basically, my reading is that Novartis and Roche are not affected by this, since they have announced very large investments. But of course, especially in the biotech sector, there are other relevant players that are affected. However, we still know too little to make a definitive assessment.

Do you feel sidelined as a lobby organisation now that Trump negotiates directly with companies?
“Sidelined” is the wrong word. Trump is practising power politics, and the classic saying is: divide et impera – divide and rule. One reason is probably that the legal basis for his executive order on Most Favoured Nation prices is not particularly solid, whereas bilateral agreements are. That’s a challenge for both associations and companies.

Is US policy pushing Switzerland into the arms of the EU?
That is a difficult question. Trade with America has grown significantly in Switzerland over the past few decades, not just in the pharmaceutical sector. Now that we’ve been hit with 39% tariffs, more and more voices are saying we need to move closer to the EU. The draft of the new agreement between the European Union and Switzerland will soon be presented to parliament, but then the Swiss people will still have to vote. That will take around two years — an eternity, given the ever-shorter half-life of political certainty.