Comments by Neil Clothier, senior expert at negotiation specialists Huthwaite International. Trump’s at it again, and has now hit the headlines with his latest pledge to put ‘American patients first’. As such, the US is planning to use its muscle in the pharmaceutical market to push up the cost of drug prices in Europe, in turn lowering the cost paid by US citizens. That means there could be a potential price hike on pharmaceuticals purchased by the NHS.

Clearly, that’s not great news domestically, and with the NHS already struggling with its budgets, the impact of this proposed move is set to be negative to say the least. Not all bad news: the NHS’ purchasing power is crucial

However, there is one advantage the NHS holds, and it centres on effective and strategic negotiation.

Prices in the UK are currently dictated in the main by The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), which works collectively to secure major discounts on drugs shipped to the UK. In simple terms, the scale of the NHS gives the UK buying power when it comes to the drugs market, just like major retailers hold buying power over manufacturers in business. And while this is what Trump is looking to challenge, the sheer buying power of the UK’s NHS remains.

In this case, we have a difficult, potential ‘stale-mate’ situation. The UK holds the NHS dear, but we also know that the reduction of health care costs are politically important to Trump – not least as lowering drug prices was on of Trump’s key campaign promises.

It is this that must be at the forefront of the UK’s political approach when it comes to working on the terms of a bilateral trade deal post-Brexit with the US.

Effective negotiation is based on knowing your own strengths, whilst recognising those of the party you are negotiating with. While the UK may not be in a position to start negotiating with the US just yet, this announcement does provide the UK with an opportunity to begin researching and preparing its negotiation stance with the US. The UK also needs to thoroughly consider pre-trade talks, working out what Trump wants to achieve, and what the UK has to offer in return to help sweeten any potential deal.

Successful negotiations are based on in-depth planning and understanding what is valuable to the opposition. If you understand what the opposite party is and isn’t willing to negotiate on, you understand where the wiggle room for negotiation lies.

Courtesy. The Times