US President Donald Trump on Monday announced nine more agreements with pharmaceutical manufacturers intended to lower prescription drug prices nationwide, bringing the total to 26, but patient advocates responded skeptically. The…
Page F3From§Eachthe late evening edition — 31 August 2026
Trump vows Hollywood revival with federal tax breaks as drug-price plan called a distraction
The receipts are clear: Trump’s promise of tax breaks for Hollywood is paired with a pharma deal labeled a distraction from the failed plan to lower drug prices. The mechanism is the sequence—public attention is steered to a glamour industry while the critical issue of drug pricing lingers unresolved. The official defense is employment numbers, but the ledger doesn’t reconcile: jobs in entertainment are counted, but the cost of medication is not. The gap is precise—tax relief for producers, no relief for patients. The stakes are measured in copays and ticket stubs. In lieu of flowers, send the pharmacy receipt to the studio accountant.
“They hand Hollywood a tax break and tell you it’s about jobs, then quietly let the drug prices keep climbing. The showbiz revival is just a curtain hiding the pharmacy bill. The stakes are the medicine you can't afford and the movies you weren't asking for.”
“Tax breaks for Hollywood are a proven job creator, and the drug-price plan is simply misunderstood. If the critics call it a distraction, that’s their opinion—not ours. Did I mention the entertainment industry employs thousands? Yes, but the health sector employs millions, so both plans are equally important.”
The receipts
President Trump called on Congress to quickly approve a nationwide tax incentive for film and television production, throwing his weight behind a rare bipartisan push to lure entertainment jobs back to the US.
This page is a back-issue: the story as it ran, receipts as they were. The current edition is at the front.