Rare-disease biotech coalition urges Trump admin to carve out orphan drugs from Medicare price-cut pilots

Biotech firms formed the Rare Disease Company Coalition and met with the White House Office of Management and Budget to discuss excluding orphan drugs from two Medicare price‑cut pilot programs.

The pilots are part of President Trump’s most‑favored‑nation pricing plan, which seeks to lower U.S. drug prices to levels seen in other wealthy countries.

Companies argue that orphan drugs, which serve small patient populations, require special treatment and that exclusion would preserve incentives for rare‑disease research.

If granted, the exemption would reduce the pilots' scope, which already leaves out some large manufacturers, and could shape future drug‑pricing policy debates.