President Donald Trump on Tuesday said the US will soon announce a “major” tariff on pharmaceutical imports.
Speaking to an event at the National Republican Congressional Committee, Trump said the tariff will incentivise drug companies to move their operations to the US.
On Tuesday, European pharmaceutical companies warned the European Commission president that US tariffs would expedite the industry’s shift away from Europe and towards the United States.
Pharmaceutical trade lobby EFPIA, whose members include European pharmaceutical giants Bayer, Novartis and Novo Nordisk, said it had called on EU President Ursula von der Leyen to push for “rapid and radical action” to mitigate the “risk of exodus” to the US.
EFPIA said the EU needs to change its regulatory framework for the industry to make it more conducive to innovation and strengthen Europe’s intellectual property provisions.
The demands were not new. EFPIA has repeatedly warned that Europe’s pharmaceutical sector will lose out to increased competition from the US, China and emerging markets if the EU does not amend a proposed revamp of laws governing the sector.
“Now with the uncertainty created by the threat of tariffs, there is little incentive to invest in the EU and significant drivers to relocate to the US,” the EFPIA statement read.