The Independent: pharma executive faints during Trump’s Oval Office announcement on drug pricing deal

A pharmaceutical executive collapsed in the Oval Office on Thursday while standing behind the US President Donald Trump during the announcement of a new agreement aimed at reducing prices for weight-loss medications, The Independent reported.

The man, identified by reporters as Gordon Findlay, an executive from Novo Nordisk, appeared to lose consciousness as Trump discussed the deal. His knees buckled and he was caught by Dr. Mehmet Oz, head of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, who helped him to the ground, preventing injury.

According to the report, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt later confirmed that the representative had fainted but was quickly attended to by the White House Medical Unit. “The gentleman is okay,” Leavitt said, noting that the press conference was briefly paused and then resumed.

The announcement involved representatives from Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly, who have partnered with the Trump administration on an initiative to expand access to GLP-1 medications - popular weight-loss and diabetes drugs such as Ozempic, Wegovy and Zepbound.

Under the new deal, the companies will make oral versions of these medications available for as low as $149 per month, pending FDA approval. Injectable versions are expected to cost $245 per month for Medicare and Medicaid patients using them for approved medical conditions.

The event was part of Trump’s broader push to promote TrumpRx, a forthcoming federal platform intended to facilitate direct-to-consumer access to prescription drugs beginning next year, according to The Independent.