Editorial Board
How to Cut US Drug Prices Without Hurting Innovation
Other rich nations need to pay more for drug development.
Negotiator in chief.
Photographer: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images North America
The price of Wegovy, Novo Nordisk’s blockbuster weight-loss drug, is $1,349 a month in the US; in Germany, it’s $328. The US price for Keytruda, a cancer treatment, is $191,000 a year; in Japan, it’s $44,000. The US pays three times more for branded prescription drugs, on average, than other rich countries. It certainly looks as though Americans are getting a bad deal.
The White House wants to narrow this discrepancy. On Monday, health officials announced a plan that would more closely align US prices with those abroad. It might be an idea worth trying — if executed properly.