STAT+: The White House declares ‘promises made, promises kept’ on lowering drug prices. Nice try
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- Bureau of Labor Statistics reported prescription drug prices fell 3.1% over the 12 months ending in July, the steepest annual decline since 1963
- Drug prices fell an additional 0.8% from June to July per the Consumer Price Index, marking the third straight monthly decline
- President Trump and his aides have claimed credit for the decline, pointing to the TrumpRx consumer website and executive actions he is said to have engineered
- The White House has framed the figures as fulfillment of 'promises made, promises kept' on drug pricing
- STAT+ headlined its analysis 'Nice try' and wrote that 'nothing is that simple,' questioning whether TrumpRx and executive actions deserve the credit being assigned
Why it matters: The 3.1% annual decline is the largest since 1963, and the administration is seizing it as a political win by crediting TrumpRx and executive actions — but STAT+'s 'Nice try' headline and the line 'nothing is that simple' indicate the credit may not match the actual drivers behind the drop.
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