An American tariff of 25% to pharmaceutical imports would increase the costs of medicines in that country by almost US $ 51,000 million annually, What would raise prices in the United States up to 12.9% if it was movedaccording to a report commissioned by the American commercial group of the industry and reviewed by Reuters.
The analysis, conducted by Ernst & Young, revealed that the United States imported US $ 203,000 million in pharmaceutical products in 2023, of which 73 % came from Europe, mainly from Ireland, Germany and Switzerland. Total sales of pharmaceutical products finished in the United States that year amounted to US $ 393,000 million.
The report, dated April 22 and that was not made public, was commissioned by the main American pharmaceutical lobby, Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, whose members are Amgen, Bristol Myers Squibb, Eli Lilly and Pfizer, among others.
Phrma did not immediately respond to a comment request. The group argued that tariffs would undermine efforts to boost national manufacturing, an objective of US President Donald Trump.
Pharmaceutical products have been left out of commercial wars due to possible damage, But the government has repeatedly threatened to apply a 25% tariff to pharmaceutical imports.
Last week, the Trump administration announced research on pharmaceutical imports, citing national security concerns for dependence on the production of foreign medicines.
The measure triggered a period of public comments of 21 days as part of the investigation led by the Department of Commerce.
Pharmaceutical companies see research as an opportunity to show the administration that high tariffs would hinder their efforts to quickly increase US production and propose alternatives, Ted Murphy said, commercial lawyer of the law firm Sidley Austin, who advises companies in their presentations to the Department of Commerce.
Pharmaceutical companies have also pressed to Trump to gradually apply tariffs to imported pharmaceutical products with the hope of reducing the impact of charges.
On Thursday, the Swiss Pharmacist Roche said he is requesting the United States government, In direct conversations, exemptions of import tariffs, arguing that the products it sends to the United States are compensated with their exports of medicines and diagnoses manufactured in the United States.
Production costs are only a factor that determines the price of newer medications and is not clear to what extent tariffs on imported intermediate inputs or imported finished products would move to consumers, the report points out.
Tariffs on imported finished products could be transferred to consumers by wholesale or retail distributors who pay the tariff.
But if tariffs moved entirely through higher prices in internal sales, EY estimates that drug prices in the United States could increase up to 12.9%.
Approximately 30% of pharmaceutical imports in 2023 were ingredients used in manufacturing in the United States and then exported or sold in that country.
Tariffs on these medications would increase internal production costs 4.1% and reduce the global competitiveness of medications manufactured in the United StatesPoints out the report.
Approximately 25% of American pharmaceutical production is exported, which totaled US $ 101,000 million in 2023. Ey said that a part of the 490,000 jobs related to exports in the industry could be at risk if the highest costs of inputs weaken the foreign demand for US medications.
The report did not include the impact of possible retaliation tariffs. The economic impact of these for American producers would be much more significant.
