Disputed Percentages: Trump and Kennedy’s Drug-Price Claims Under Scrutiny

President Donald Trump has repeatedly asserted that his administration’s policies have cut prescription-drug prices by “500 %, 600 %” or more. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. defended the claim by saying the president uses “a different way of calculating percentages,” citing a hypothetical drop from $600 to $10 as a “600 % reduction.” Standard arithmetic, however, defines a percentage decrease as the difference divided by the original price, which would make that example a 98.3 % reduction. Likewise, an increase from $100 to $600 is a 500 % rise, not 600 %.

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The statements appear alongside promotion of the federal “TrumpRx” website, which directs consumers to negotiated discounts on brand-name drugs. In an Oval Office event on April 23, 2026, the administration announced a price-reduction deal with biotech firm Regeneron and highlighted tariff relief for participating manufacturers. Critics note that many listed drugs have cheaper generic equivalents elsewhere.

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• Donald Trump – President, proponent of the “different calculation.”

Orange County Register

• Robert F. Kennedy Jr. – HHS Secretary, echoed Trump’s math.

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• Elizabeth Warren – Senate Finance Committee chair (MA), challenged the percentages.

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• Ron Wyden – Ranking member (OR), asked for published drug-company agreements.

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• Bernie Sanders – Independent senator (VT), dismissed the administration’s cost claims.

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• Mariana Socal – Johns Hopkins associate professor, cited in prior AP fact-check.

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• Kit Yates – Mathematician, University of Bath, commented on the redefinition of percentages.

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• Claimed “600 % reduction” on a $600 drug to $10 actually equals a 98.3 % cut.

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• A $600-to-$100 price drop represents roughly an 83 % saving, not 600 %.

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• The Center for American Progress found only 1 of 54 TrumpRx-listed medications priced lower than alternatives, and about one-third of the list had cheaper generics.

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• Warren cited a TrumpRx heartburn drug at $200 versus a $16 generic at Costco.

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Inflated percentages can mislead patients about real savings, affect public trust in health-policy messaging, and obscure the extent of tariff relief granted to pharmaceutical firms. Accurate representation of price changes is essential for evaluating the effectiveness of the administration’s drug-affordability agenda.

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Trump described his figures as “different kinds of calculation” that “doesn’t make any difference.” Kennedy reiterated that the president “used that mathematical device” to illustrate “the magnitude of the theft” from Americans. The administration maintains that TrumpRx provides “sharply lower prices” for cash-paying consumers and that the Regeneron deal expands access to discounted drugs.

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Warren argued the percentages “could suggest companies should be paying you to take their drugs,” and warned that many TrumpRx prices exceed those at retailers like Costco. Wyden pressed Kennedy to release the written agreements with manufacturers; Kennedy declined. Sanders labeled the claim that Americans now pay “the lowest costs in the world” as “absurd.” The AP fact-check concluded that reductions exceeding 100 % would require manufacturers to pay consumers.

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• Trump and Kennedy’s “different way” of calculating percentages conflicts with standard arithmetic.

Orange County Register

• The administration has not published the specific contracts underpinning TrumpRx pricing or tariff exemptions.

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• Independent analyses (CAP, AP) report limited actual savings, while the White House continues to cite high-percentage cuts.

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• “President Trump has a different way of calculating percentages. There's two ways of calculating percentages. If you have a $600 drug and you reduce it to $10, that's a 600% reduction.” — Robert F. Kennedy Jr., HHS Secretary

PBS News Hour

• “Which I think means companies should be paying you to take their drugs,” — Elizabeth Warren, U.S. Senator (MA)

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• “Think about that: Big Pharma makes billions of dollars in tariff relief by listing their drugs on TrumpRx, and then they don't even lower the costs on many of these drugs,” — Elizabeth Warren, U.S. Senator (MA)

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• “That is an absurd statement,” — Bernie Sanders, Independent U.S. Senator (VT)

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• “You can't just redefine how you calculate percentages.” — Kit Yates, Mathematician, University of Bath

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The Senate Finance Committee is expected to continue probing TrumpRx contracts and the methodology behind the administration’s pricing claims. Lawmakers have signaled interest in legislation that would require transparent disclosure of drug-price agreements and standardized reporting of percentage changes.

Newsweek