Trump Strikes Deal With German Merck on Tariffs and IVF Costs
President Donald Trump announced a deal with Germany’s Merck KGaA to lower the price of some fertility drugs in exchange for immunity from threatened tariffs; This was a step toward fulfilling his campaign promise to make IVF cheaper and more available in the United States.
The administration will issue guidance allowing employers to offer fertility benefits as excepted benefits, a category that includes supplemental health coverage such as dental and vision. The guidance will allow employers to offer additional coverage at a fixed cost for patients and employers.
The White House had previously issued an executive order directing the administration to produce policy recommendations aimed at lowering the cost of expensive fertility treatments by May. The report never came. Now, five months later, the technology is being addressed, which could cost more than $15,000 per procedure.
“The result will be healthier pregnancies, healthier babies, and much more beautiful American children,” Trump said at a press conference in the Oval Office on Thursday.
Fertility was a frequent talking point on the campaign trail for Trump, who once called himself the “father of IVF” at a town hall. But that has become a sticking point for some of his conservative base, especially after the Alabama Supreme Court ruled in 2023 that frozen embryos can be considered children. Some fertility clinics suspended treatment until the Republican governor signed legislation shielding providers from liability.
“Promoting IVF on the White House podium should have a positive impact on awareness and adoption of IVF, even without the actual financial benefits provided to employers for adopting these benefits,” Michael Cherny, an analyst at Leerink Partners, wrote in a note to investors.
Trump is taking steps to lower health care prices. Pfizer Inc. and made deals with AstraZeneca Plc to defer tariffs on its drugs in exchange for getting the same benefits in the U.S. as it does abroad. Drug companies also agreed to lower the prices they offer to the Medicaid health insurance program for low-income and disabled Americans.
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