Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla descended with his top management team to Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort for an off-site meeting, in the latest effort by the American business to engage with the US president-elect.
Bourla arrived with several members of his senior leadership in Palm Beach, Florida, on Monday evening, according to flight records and two people familiar with the matter.
PfizerThe executive team uses Mar-a-Lago for multi-day planning meetings, the people said. Although there is no scheduled meeting between Bourla and Trump, the pair could work together and the location choice is another example of the pharmaceutical industry reaching out to Trump, a person familiar with the meeting said.
Pharma executives were eyeing the appointment of vaccine skeptic and independent former president Robert F Kennedy Jr and his allies. run the US Department of Health and its powerful agencies, such as the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Kennedy and his advisers have sown doubts about the widespread release of vaccines and a new class of blockbuster weight-loss drugs. He will meet with about a dozen senators across the political spectrum, including Democrat Elizabeth Warren and independent Bernie Sanders, in the coming days.
After contacting the Financial Times, Pfizer confirmed that the meeting was held at Mar-a-Lago. Trump's transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Bourla, who has worked closely with the Trump administration on the development of a Covid-19 vaccine, has led the charge to cheer on the president-elect.
Bourla met with Trump at Mar-a-Lago in the run-up to the November election, and then was instrumental in arranging a December dinner with Trump, Kennedy, Eli Lilly chief David Ricks and Stephen Ubl, PhRMA's head of business. a group of activists, people say.
The Pfizer boss is among a growing list of company executives trying to foster a more direct relationship with Trump ahead of his inauguration on January 20. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Apple CEO Tim Cook dined with Trump on Mar. -a-Lago in recent weeks.
Pfizer is one of several companies, including Meta and Amazon, that have he pledged money to Trump's nomination committeesaid the man.
Despite the pharma industry's concerns about Kennedy's nomination, some executives hope they can help shape a favorable policy agenda, according to Washington lobbyists.
“Everybody knows where Donald Trump is going to move with power but there are a lot of things that could have a billion dollar impact on Big Tech and medicine,” said Matt Mowers, a former Trump official who runs Valcour. “Those important things are the places where these companies need to start working with incoming management.”
“If I were the CEO of a pharmaceutical company, I would go down to Mar-a-Lago,” said John LaMattina, the former head of research and development at Pfizer. “Trump likes people to come and pay him respect, and he listens when they come. So what better way to reach out than to go directly to the president-elect and plead your case? “
Among the issues where business leaders think they can work with the new administration are reforms of pharmacy benefit managers, companies that negotiate drug prices on behalf of employers, insurers and state-sponsored health insurance programs, LaMattina said. These companies have been criticized for making huge profits. Executives hope to work with Kennedy in his efforts to shake up the food industry as part of his “Make America Healthy Again” agenda.
Pfizer, one of the world's largest vaccine makers, was among several pharmaceutical stocks that sold after Kennedy's announcement. Trump's nomination to run the US health department. In December, Kennedy met with more than 20 Republicans to discuss his plans for the role before his confirmation.