Trump Strikes Deal to Lower IVF Costs

Drugmaker EMD Serono will reduce the cost of a common fertility medication through a deal struck with the Trump administration, President Donald Trump said Thursday while also unveiling new federal guidance he said will encourage employers to offer fertility coverage.

The new guidance will allow companies to offer fertility benefits separate from major medical insurance plans, like they do with dental and vision plans, Trump said.

“We want to make it easier for all couples to have babies, raise children and start the families they have always dreamed about,” Trump said.

The Oval Office announcement offers a first glimpse at how Trump plans to follow up on his executive order earlier this year aiming to reduce the cost of in vitro fertilization, a medical procedure that helps people facing infertility build their families. But it falls far short of his promise as a candidate to make IVF treatment free. It marks the third deal the administration has made with pharmaceutical companies to cut drug prices in recent weeks.

The White House and EMD Serono said the drug, along with all its other IVF medications, will be available at a discount on TrumpRx, a government website where patients will be able to buy drugs directly from manufacturers. The Trump administration contends that the new website, which is expected to be running in 2026, will cut pharmaceutical costs by allowing people to buy them without a middleman.

Trump said the Food and Drug Administration will also be working with EMD Serono to expedite approval of another one of its fertility drugs available in Europe, called Pergoveris.

Asked on Thursday about conservatives who have religious objections to IVF and are critical of his support for it, Trump said he wasn’t aware of those views.

“I don’t know about the views of that,” Trump said. “I’m just looking to do something because, you know, pro-life, I think this is very pro-life.”

“You can’t get more pro-life than this,” he added.