US and UK announce an agreement to raise UK drug prices by 25%

On December 1, 2025, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, the Department of Commerce, and the Department of Health and Human Services announced an agreement with the United Kingdom that will raise the net price of new prescription drugs sold there by 25% ^[1]. The White House says the deal is meant to make sure the UK "pays their fair share for innovative medicines" rather than relying on higher U.S. prices to cover drug development costs ^[1].

The UK agreement is one piece of a broader campaign the Trump administration has run since May 2025, when the president signed an executive order titled "Delivering Most-Favored-Nation Prescription Drug Pricing to American Patients," directing agencies to bring U.S. drug prices closer to what similar wealthy nations pay ^[1]. In July 2025, the administration sent letters to major drugmakers laying out steps to match U.S. prices to the lowest price paid in other developed countries ^[1]. Since September 30, 2025, the administration says it has struck 16 manufacturer deals under this most-favored-nation, or MFN, framework ^[1].

Those manufacturer deals are already showing up in prices for GLP-1 medicines. When the administration launched TrumpRx.gov on February 5, 2026, it listed new U.S. list prices for several top-selling drugs, including two GLP-1 medicines: Ozempic (semaglutide) is falling from $1,028 a month to an average of $350, and as low as $199 depending on dose; injectable Wegovy (semaglutide) is dropping from $1,349 a month to an average of $350, with prices as low as $199; the Wegovy pill is falling from $1,349 to as low as $149; and Zepbound (tirzepatide) is dropping from $1,088 a month to an average of $346, as low as $299 ^[1]. Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly, the makers of these drugs, are both listed among the first five manufacturers to reach MFN pricing deals with the administration ^[1].

The source describing the UK agreement does not spell out how the 25% increase will be applied, which specific drugs are covered, or whether GLP-1 medicines are named in the deal itself ^[1]. It is not yet known from available information how the UK price change will affect what the National Health Service pays for semaglutide or tirzepatide products, or whether other countries will sign similar agreements.

Why it matters for patients

For people in the United States taking or considering Ozempic, Wegovy, Rybelsus, Mounjaro, or Zepbound, the UK deal itself does not change what they pay. But it is part of the administration's stated strategy for lowering the list prices Americans see, which the White House links directly to the discounts now listed on TrumpRx.gov for Ozempic, Wegovy, and Zepbound ^[1]. The administration's argument is that if other wealthy countries like the UK pay more, drugmakers will have less reason to charge Americans the highest prices in the world ^[1]. Whether that logic holds up, and whether the discounted prices on TrumpRx.gov reach every patient with a valid prescription regardless of insurance status, is something patients will need to watch as the program rolls out.

What happens next

The administration says it plans to add drugs from other manufacturers with MFN deals to TrumpRx.gov "in the coming months" ^[1]. On January 15, 2026, President Trump asked Congress to pass what the White House calls the Great Healthcare Plan, which would write MFN pricing savings into law and address insurance premiums and price transparency ^[1]. Additional manufacturer deals and fact sheets have followed into 2026, according to the source, though further UK-specific details have not been published in the material reviewed here ^[1].