Trump’s pharma tariffs will make the world a sicker place

When US President Donald Trump announced a 100% tariff on imported branded pharmaceuticals from October 1, 2025, markets across Asia trembled.

Shares of leading drugmakers in India, Japan, and Australia shed billions in value within hours. But while investors felt the sting first, the true cost of Trump’s tariff tantrum will be borne by patients — the very people who rely on timely, affordable access to medicines.

The White House has defended the move as a way to re-shore production, citing national security and “America First” imperatives. Companies that have begun building plants in the United States may be exempt.

But the practical reality is stark: drugs are not widgets. Relocating or building new pharmaceutical manufacturing capacity can take five to ten years, not months. In the meantime, shortages and spiralling prices are inevitable.

In Tokyo, Sumitomo Pharma lost more than 4% of its market value, while Australia’s CSL plunged to a six-year low. Indian giants like Sun Pharma and Wockhardt also saw steep declines, reflecting fears of US market contraction. Yet these financial tremors are only the tip of the iceberg.

For patients, especially those requiring specialized treatments for cancer, autoimmune diseases, or rare disorders, a 100% tariff means life-saving drugs will become prohibitively expensive.

Health insurers may absorb some of the shock in rich countries, but in developing nations or among marginalized communities, price hikes translate directly into untreated illnesses and premature deaths.

Human cost beyond balance sheets

The pharmaceutical sector is unlike textiles or furniture. Each medicine is the product of years of R&D, regulatory approval, and careful calibration. If exporters pull back from the US market, or if supply chains fracture, ripple effects will be global. A small interruption in one country can cascade into shortages across multiple regions.

The World Health Organization has long warned that medicine access is not just an economic issue but a fundamental human right. Trump’s move risks widening global health inequities, especially as low-income populations will shoulder the heaviest burden.

Moreover, every dollar that companies redirect from research into tariff-circumvention strategies is a dollar less for discovering the next generation of cures. In the long run, the tariffs could slow medical innovation, with consequences far beyond today’s headlines.

The timing is also combustible. Trump has simultaneously imposed new tariffs on trucks and furniture, sparking fears of yet another trade war.

China, India and the EU may respond with retaliatory measures. In the pharmaceutical sector, where supply chains are globalized — from active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) in China to clinical trials in India and research hubs in Europe — tit-for-tat tariffs will leave no country untouched.

For Southeast Asia, the stakes are high. Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore all serve as key nodes in drug packaging, distribution, and logistics. Any disruption could undermine not only exports but also domestic health security.

At a time when ASEAN is trying to rebuild resilience after the pandemic, Trump’s tariff crusade adds another layer of uncertainty.

Some analysts believe the 100% figure is a bluff — a maximalist opening designed to extract concessions. Perhaps so. But even if tariffs are diluted later, the damage is already being done. Markets are rattled, investment decisions are frozen, and pharmaceutical boards are recalibrating supply strategies.

The more dangerous risk is that trade becomes a hostage of electoral theater, with real human lives treated as collateral damage. In the rush to shore up votes in the American Midwest, Trump may be creating a global drug famine that will hurt the world’s most vulnerable populations.

Call for responsible leadership

The lesson from this crisis is simple: medicines cannot be treated as mere bargaining chips in trade wars. They are public goods, essential to the dignity and survival of millions. Tariffs in this sector are not abstract levers of economic policy — they are blunt weapons that cut into the flesh of humanity.

ASEAN, preparing for its East Asia Summit in Kuala Lumpur, must seize this moment to argue for the exemption of life-saving pharmaceuticals from all trade hostilities. Malaysia, as chair, has a moral duty to insist that health security be recognized alongside energy and food security as a global common.

Trump’s tariffs may boost his political base, but the long-term cost will be measured in untreated illnesses, widening inequality and a slowdown in pharmaceutical innovation. The world cannot afford to let tariff tantrums trumphumanhealth.

Phar Kim Beng (PhD) is professor of ASEAN studies, International Islamic University of Malaysia, and director, Institute of International and ASEAN Studies (IINTAS).