Sens. Cruz, Cotton, Colleagues Introduce Bill to End US Dependence on Chinese-Manufactured Pharmaceuticals

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), and Rick Scott (R-Fla.) today introduced the Protecting our Pharmaceutical Supply Chain from China Act, which would end U.S. dependence on China for pharmaceutical manufacturing.

Upon introduction, Sen. Cruz said:

"American dependence on Chinese supply chains is not only a health threat but a national security threat. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, we saw mouthpieces of the Chinese Communist Party threatening to withhold critical medical materials. I am proud to join Sen. Cotton on this bill to defend American drug manufacturers from China's economic warfare, and most importantly, protect American lives."

Sen. Cotton said:

"The Chinese Communist Party has threatened to cut off America's access to vital drugs in the midst of a pandemic caused by its own failures. It's time to pull America's supply chains for life-saving medicine out of China and make the CCP pay for contributing to this global emergency."

Sen. Blackburn said:

"The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored America's heavy dependence on China for critical prescription drugs. We cannot continue to allow Beijing to hold the keys to our pharmaceutical supply chain and risk future drug shortages, contaminated drugs, or ineffective drugs. This legislation helps to ensure Communist China no longer plays a role in creating or providing U.S. prescription drugs and further incentivizes manufacturers to produce necessary medication on American soil."

Sen. Braun said:

"The majority of active ingredients for pharmaceuticals are made in China, and the Chinese Communist Party showed through their lies, coverups, and threats to cut off American access to drugs throughout the COVID-19 pandemic that they can't be trusted. I'm proud to join Senator Cotton's bill to incentivize making drugs in the U.S. and end our dependence on China for drug manufacturing."

Sen. Scott added:

"We cannot continue to rely on countries like Communist China, who lied about the coronavirus and refuses to be a partner in solving this crisis, for critical supplies and medicine. This outbreak has shown why we need to end our reliance on foreign supply chains. Removing Communist China from our pharmaceutical supply chain is the right move."

BACKGROUND

Specifically, the bill will:

• Track active pharmaceutical ingredients through an FDA registry.
• Prohibit pharmaceutical purchases from China or products with active pharmaceutical ingredients created in China*.
• Create transparency in the supply chain by instituting a country-of-origin label of all imported drugs.
• Provide economic incentives for manufacturing drugs and medical equipment in the United States.

This requirement will be phased in over two years. The FDA may issue waivers if the active pharmaceutical ingredients are only available in China, however, no waivers may be issued after 2026.

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