The Trump Administration’s June 2025 executive order on the US.-UK Economic Prosperity Deal includes measures covering pharmaceutical products and medical technology.
The US and the UK reached an agreement on 1 December 2025 that eliminates tariffs on British pharmaceutical products and medical technology.
In exchange, the UK has committed to increasing its spending on medicines and reforming how it determines drug prices. As part of the deal, the UK will pay 25% more for new US medicines.
In return, British-made medicines, pharmaceutical ingredients, and medical technology will be shielded from both current Section 232 sectoral tariffs and any future Section 301 tariffs targeting specific countries.
The Office of the US Trade Representative has also issued a release on the deal on the same day.
Earlier, the Trump Administration released a Fact Sheet on 17 June 2025, detailing the executive order signed the previous day titled Implementing the General Terms of the US-UK Economic Prosperity Deal, which includes provisions on pharmaceutical products and medical technology.
Landmark UK-US pharmaceuticals deal to safeguard medicines access and drive vital investment for UK patients and businesses
Tens of thousands of NHS patients will benefit from a landmark trade deal between the UK and the US, which will secure and expand access to vital drugs, safeguard our medicines supply chain, and drive crucial investment while supporting UK patients and industries.
The deal – part of the UK-US Economic Prosperity Deal – sees the UK become the only country in the world to secure a zero percent tariff on pharmaceuticals to the US – protecting UK-based manufacturing and cementing our place as a world leader for life sciences investment. The deal will also secure preferential terms for the UK’s med tech exports meaning no additional new tariffs on medtech to unlock further investments in UK and a further boost to growth.
The move has secured the confidence of the pharmaceutical industry that the UK is a top destination for investment and growth, with major firms like Moderna, Bristol Myers Squibb, and BioNTech investing billions here, driving renewed confidence in the UK and supporting the government’s ambition for the UK to become Europe’s leading life sciences economy by 2030.
The government will also invest around 25% more in innovative, safe, and effective treatments – the first major increase in over 2 decades. It means the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) will be able to approve medicines that deliver significant health improvements but might have previously been declined purely on cost-effectiveness grounds – this could include breakthrough cancer treatments, therapies for rare diseases, and innovative approaches to conditions that have long been difficult to treat. These changes will ensure that NICE is able to continue its world leading approach to assessing drugs and treatments and keep pace with the commercial and economic environment in which pharmaceutical companies are operating in today.
This is supported by confirmation that – thanks to strong UK support for innovation - the UK has secured mitigations under the US’ ‘Most Favoured Nation’ drug pricing initiative so that we will continue to ensure access to the latest treatments. This will encourage pharmaceutical companies from around the world to prioritise the UK for early launches of their new medicines, meaning British patients could be among the first globally to access breakthrough treatments.
The UK has a history of international leadership in early access to innovative drugs. It has delivered breakthrough medicines like Blenrep, a revolutionary blood cancer therapy for multiple myeloma which the NHS in England was the first health system in the world to roll-out; Kimmtrak, the first-of-a-kind eye cancer drug; and Aucatzyl, the personalised leukaemia treatment which is now benefitting NHS patients and used around the world. The reforms announced to the UK’s drug pricing system could make these kind of early, innovative launches more regular for UK patients.
Investing in medicines helps keep people healthier for longer, reducing pressure on the health service over the longer-term.
These changes build on recent Government reforms that have halved the time it takes to approve clinical trials from 91 to 41 days, ensuring patients can participate in potentially life-changing research several weeks sooner than before.
The pharmaceutical sector’s continued strength is vital for patients who depend on innovative medicines to treat and prevent disease.
This deal links directly to the government’s 10 Year Health Plan and forms part of its Modern Industrial Strategy and Life Sciences Sector Plan, with life sciences identified as a key growth-driving sector that will create high-quality jobs and boost the economy.
It also builds on the government’s commitment to turbocharge medical research through better and faster access to NHS data for researchers via a new Health Data Research Service (HDRS) that will transform access to NHS data and slash red tape for researchers.
