Drugmakers’ ‘Doughnut Hole’ Deal to Shave Sales Less Than 1%

Drugmakers led by Pfizer Inc., AstraZeneca and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. may provide more than $2 billion in drug discounts to senior citizens next year under a deal pharmaceutical companies made with the White House, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Pfizer, the world’s largest drug company, will cede less than half of 1 percent of its $50 billion in annual revenue under the arrangement. The deal provides Medicare beneficiaries who fall into a coverage gap known as the “doughnut hole” 50 percent off brand-name medications. Worldwide sales by brand-name drugmakers in 2008 totaled $288 billion, according to data from the drug industry’s trade association.