U.S. President Donald Trump¡¯s push for lower U.S. drug prices has unexpectedly helped Astellas Pharma secure higher reimbursement pricing for its new eye medicine in Japan.

The Tokyo-based drugmaker, in a submission to Japanese officials, argued that domestic drug costs could influence U.S. pricing under Trump¡¯s proposed most-favored nation scheme. Following this, Astellas won a reimbursement level for Izervay that was more generous than typical outcomes, Chief Executive Officer Naoki Okamura said in an interview.

¡°We leveraged this most favored nation dialog,¡± Okamura said. He believes Izervay got ¡°relatively reasonable pricing¡± in Japan.