07:11 AM EDT, 07/16/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US President Donald Trump said Tuesday he expects to impose new tariffs on pharmaceutical imports by the end of July, beginning with low rates that would rise substantially over time, news outlets reported.

The planned duties would coincide with the Aug. 1 deadline for broader reciprocal tariffs targeting individual countries, according to the report.

"Probably at the end of the month, and we're going to start off with a low tariff and give the pharmaceutical companies a year or so to build, and then we're going to make it a very high tariff," Bloomberg News reported, citing Trump.

Eli Lilly ( LLY ) , Merck ( MRK ) , Pfizer ( PFE ) and other pharmaceutical companies that manufacture drugs abroad are expected to be affected immediately, the news outlet reported. Trump recently said tariffs on pharmaceuticals could reach up to 200%, according to the report.