President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order imposing a 100 percent tariff on imported brand-name pharmaceuticals, citing national security concerns and a need to reduce “import reliance.”
The move, enacted under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act, targets patented drugs and their ingredients but includes a series of major exemptions that significantly narrow the scope of the triple-digit duties. Generic and orphan drugs are entirely exempt from the new levies, and manufacturers like Pfizer, Merck, and AstraZeneca that have entered “Most Favored Nation” (MFN) pricing agreements with the administration will face no tariffs.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. stated the order is a “big step” toward ending a system where Americans pay more for medicine than patients in other countries. U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer added the policy ensures trading partners pay their “fair share” for research and development. Companies that commit to building manufacturing facilities in the United States by the end of Trump’s term will see their tariff rate reduced to 20 percent.
The administration also set specific rates for key allies, with imports from the European Union, Japan, South Korea, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein facing a 15 percent duty, while drugs from the United Kingdom will be subject to a 10 percent rate. The pharmaceutical industry quickly criticized the decision, with PhRMA CEO Stephen J. Ubl warning that the tariffs would increase costs and jeopardize billions in U.S. investments. Ubl noted that two-thirds of medicines consumed in the U.S. are already produced domestically.
The announcement falls on the one-year anniversary of “Liberation Day,” when Trump first imposed sweeping tariffs that were later struck down as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in February 2026. The new sector-specific approach signals a strategy to bypass previous legal hurdles through methodical investigations.