AbbVie has announced that it has reached an agreement for affordable prescription drugs with the US government.
The terms of the agreement state that AbbVie will provide lower-priced prescription drugs through the Medicaid programme. It has also pledged an $100bn investment in US-based operations over the next decade, including R&D, capital investments and manufacturing.
AbbVie’s direct-to-patient treatment offerings will be increased for certain medicines, such as Alphagan, Combigan, Humira and Synthroid. The company stated that these new measures are intended to improve the accessibility and affordability of these commonly-used prescription drugs for US patients.
Humira is a treatment for inflammatory conditions that makes significant annual profits for AbbVie. Alphagan, Combigan and Synthroid, however, are not major profit-drivers. Alphagan and Combigan, both ocular medications, brought in a combined $248m in 2024, while Synthroid, a treatment for thyroid conditions, was not listed in AbbVie’s 2024 annual report.
The agreement meets all four of the US government’s drug pricing priorities and therefore includes certain ‘exemption[s] from tariffs and future price mandates’. Further terms of the agreement remain confidential.
AbbVie follows a number of other major pharmaceutical companies, including Gilead, Amgen, Novartis and Merck, in reaching an agreement with the US Government to lower drug prices and invest in US infrastructure in exchange for tariff exemption. Regeneron is now the only major pharmaceutical company contacted by the US Government that has not yet reached a drug pricing agreement.
The company has not yet announced how the planned $100bn investment will be spent, but has highlighted its existing US manufacturing presence. This presence includes 11 manufacturing sites and plans for another four, potentially allowing AbbVie to expand its production of prescription drug products, peptides, medical devices and active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs).
Robert A Michael, chairman and CEO of AbbVie, said: “With approximately 29,000 US-based employees and products treating 16 million Americans annually, we understand the complexity and access challenges in our healthcare system.”
“AbbVie’s mission is to make a remarkable impact for the patients we serve around the world through our innovative medicines.”