Drugmakers Delay European Launches Amid US Pricing Pressure Under Trump

Drugmakers are delaying launches of some new medicines in Europe as the industry grapples with U.S. pressure and pricing policy shifts from President Donald Trump. New drug launches in Europe have fallen sharply since the U.S. introduced international reference pricing in May, with drug launches in EU markets falling by some 35% in the 10 months since Trump's executive order compared with the previous 10 months. The White House has been pushing to lower the cost of prescription drugs in the United States, which has traditionally paid significantly more than other wealthy countries.

Trump says the industry has been unfair to U.S. consumers and has sought to tie the cost for Americans to what is paid elsewhere, including in Europe, known as most-favoured-nation pricing. That has led drugmakers to press pause on bringing some medicines to European markets, where health spending is lower, to avoid pulling down prices in the $700 billion U.S. market. Delaying launches at lower EU prices could help secure higher U.S. prices for longer.

"We're seeing first signs of delayed introductions into Europe," said Stefan Oelrich, president of trade body the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations and a senior executive at Bayer. He said it was "a consequence of uncertainty around what that ultimately does to U.S. pricing."

Lionel Collet, head of France's HAS health authority, said drugmakers were increasingly deferring decisions on France's early-access pathway, which allows patients to receive some medicines before formal approval. Applications for early access before marketing approval have fallen sharply over the last year. "The arrival of Trump has altered companies' strategy of how they put products on the market," he said, adding the number of HAS early-access decisions fell to 10 last year from 25 in 2024.

France is among Europe's lowest-priced medicines markets, with prices around a third of the United States. Prices in France and Germany tend to in turn affect how other European countries set prices. "Manufacturers all talk to me about Trump, since the autumn. It's all about the policy in the U.S. and what it means for Europe," Collet said.

U.S. drugmaker Insmed said in February it postponed the Germany launch of its anti-inflammatory drug Brunspri due to uncertainty over U.S. pricing plans. "We want clarity on the MFN policies," the CEO stated. "It seems to us that the prudent thing to do is to sort of put things on hold until we know what that's going to look like." The drug won European approval in November but has yet to launch in the region. The company began selling it immediately in the U.S. after receiving FDA approval in August. Over 90% of drugs approved in 2025 first launched in the U.S., with most still not available elsewhere.

Actions by the Trump administration and escalating trade wars and tariffs were identified as the two leading concerns in a GlobalData survey, each selected by 36% of survey respondents. The MFN policy, signed by President Trump last year, relies on international reference pricing for lower prescription drug costs, but if a high-income country benchmarks against the lowest prices in lower-GDP markets, it could "produce a very negative impact on access to medicines, due to delayed or cancelled product launches."

AstraZeneca executive Ruud Dobber said Europe risked falling behind the U.S. and China because of governments' approach to valuing medicines. Europe spends some 1% of GDP on pharmaceuticals, compared with 2% in the United States and 1.8% in China. It has lost ground in research and development investment, clinical trials and launching of innovative therapies, according to lobby group EFPIA.

Some companies have even pulled their drugs from European markets. California-based Amgen withdrew its cholesterol drug Repatha from Denmark, citing prices and a "changed environment", without directly citing MFN. Indivior pulled anti-addiction drugs Subutex and Suboxone from Sweden and other markets, also without directly citing U.S. pricing.

A healthcare lawyer said the uncertainty around U.S. pricing benchmarks and enforcement was complicating things for companies with their investors. "You have to tell your shareholders exactly how much money you expect to earn from this new launch. And none of that's clear," he said. Launching drugs in Europe has stalled because it's like "playing a game of chess" wearing a "blindfold".