Understanding Tariffs
What is a Tariff?
A tariff is a tax imposed on imported goods by a government. It’s essentially a duty or tax on goods that are brought into a country from another country. Historically, the United States has exempted medicines from tariffs because of the extraordinary risks they pose to vulnerable patients.
How Can Tariffs Impact Patients?
Tariffs could increase costs and worsen shortages of pharmaceuticals and medical supplies in the US healthcare system. Generic drug manufacturers may also exit the market due to financial strain, exacerbating drug shortages and increasing healthcare costs.
For example, we see that many:
- Psoriasis treatments are imported from Ireland and the Netherlands.
- Rheumatoid arthritis treatments are imported from Germany and Ireland.
People do not choose their diagnosis or their prescribed course of treatment. If a patient relies on a specialized, European-made drug with no therapeutic equivalents, they will not have the option to switch to a more affordable alternative. They could be forced to absorb the higher cost or go without.
When a physician prescribes a particular drug treatment for a patient, the patient’s insurance company may require them to try different medications and treatments before they can access the drug originally prescribed by their physician. This protocol is known as “step therapy” or “fail first.” Step therapy protocols may ignore a patient’s unique circumstances and medical history. That means patients may have to use medications that previously failed to address their medical issue, or – due to their unique medical conditions – could have dangerous side effects.
Why Can’t We Rely on the U.S. to Manufacture the Medicines Autoimmune Patients Need?
Tariffs could weaken domestic manufacturers. Drug manufacturers in the U.S. import the active pharmaceutical ingredients used to create finished drugs. About half of the active pharmaceutical ingredients used in Americans’ prescriptions are made domestically, but a substantial portion of ingredients come from allies like Europe and India. By raising the costs of these ingredients, tariffs would discourage domestic manufacturing.
Advocating for Patients
In May 2025, the Autoimmune Association and 39 other patient groups submitted comments to the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) regarding the Section 232 National Security Investigation of Imports of Pharmaceuticals and Pharmaceutical Ingredients. In this letter we requested the Administration exempt allied nations, that do not pose a threat to U.S. security, from tariffs on medicines and active pharmaceutical ingredients.
Read the letter here.
