China, Singapore and Ireland are among the nations that make a majority of the ingredients found in drugs to produce the desired health effects.
SEGUIN, Texas — The cost of prescription drugs could be going up depending on whether the White House decides to implement tariffs on imported medicines in the near future.
President Donald Trump has stressed a desire to boost manufacturing of medications in the U.S. and believes enforcing levies on imported prescription goods would one way toward achieving that goal.
While the true financial impact remains unknown, pharmacists nationwide have been preparing.
“For us, it’s not going to be good sign,” said Merlin Tchawa Yigma, owner of Seguin Pharmacy. “A lot of customers are going to worry about the prices. Price increase means that we’ll see less customers coming to the pharmacy.”
Tchawa Yigma noted how a majority of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) are made in other countries. The API’s ensure drugs on the market produce the desired health effects.
“The major supplier being Ireland, followed by China and Singapore. Almost any drug on the market can be impacted by the tariff. We are talking about antibiotics, we are also talking about pain medication, Tchawa Yigma said.
He’s heard of some pharmacies nationwide that’ve been stockpiling prescription drugs because of the tariff talks. But right now, Tchawa Yigma hasn’t felt the need to do the same. Instead, he’s been listening to and educating customers on the issue.
“Concern whether the price of the medication will be changing within the next coming month. We are telling them we are still observing. We don’t know what way it’s going to go,” Tchawa Yigma said.