Touting drugmaker deal, Trump encourages employer IVF coverage

WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump on Thursday announced a new approach by the administration to boost in vitro fertilization and other fertility treatments, as well as a deal to lower the price of a common fertility drug.

Trump said EMD Serono, which manufactures the widely used fertility drug Gonal-F, has entered into a "most favored nation" agreement with the administration, under which the company agreed to offer U.S. prices in line with what other countries pay.

Senior administration officials earlier speaking to reporters said additionally that guidance from the Health and Human Services, Treasury and Labor departments is forthcoming that will allow employers to offer stand-alone coverage of IVF benefits to employees.

As part of the agreement with EMD Serono, the Trump administration agreed to offer expedited approval for a forthcoming drug, branded as Pergoveris, which is already available in Europe.

Senior administration officials declined to provide details about the negotiations with the company but said they were similar to deals made with Pfizer and AstraZeneca in recent weeks.

The move emphasizes the administration's focus on making IVF and other fertility treatments more accessible. Trump issued an executive order earlier this year directing the assistant to the president for domestic policy to compile a list of policy recommendations that would protect access to IVF and reduce the associated costs for families.

IVF has fallen into the cross-hairs of a broader national debate over access to reproductive rights. Some Republicans, who believe that life starts at conception instead of at implantation, say discarding unused fertilized eggs in IVF should be prohibited. But many in the party largely spoke out in favor of IVF following the passage of an Alabama law last year that granted fetal personhood to frozen embryos, and they have promoted IVF and expanded access to fertility treatments to help increase the birth rate.

Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., who pushed Trump to address the legal issues with IVF following the Alabama law, appeared alongside Trump during the announcement.

"This is the most pro-IVF thing that any president and the history of the United States of America has done," she said.

Significant change on the issue has been slow because of the high price tag of fertility services. IVF cycles can cost thousands of dollars and are not covered by insurance in all states.

The Senate last year fell short in two mostly party-line votes in June and September on legislation that would protect access to IVF.

Officials said the fertility drug will be available via TrumpRx, the administration's direct-to-consumer website that it says will go live in 2026. An official said the price is expected to be 42% and 79% lower than market price, depending on a person's income, reducing the cost of IVF cycles by nearly half, to about $2,200 per treatment.

The forthcoming guidance will allow fertility treatments to be designated as "accepted benefits" to be offered outside of a major medical insurance plan. Officials said that the guidance will both encourage employers to offer the benefit and incentivize health care providers to offer IVF treatments for the lowest possible price.

But the guidance would be strictly voluntary, and it's unclear how employers would be incentivized to comply.