Sens. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., and Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., said in an opinion piece Tuesday that they are presenting two bills that will secure the United States' pharmaceutical supply chain and end the nation's passive dependence on China for essential supplies.
"The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed China’s ability to wreak havoc on the global economy and cut off our access to essential supplies," they wrote in their opinion piece for Fox News, adding that the "malicious actions" of the Chinese Communist Party should come as no surprise and calling on Congress to focus on targeted legislation.
The Securing America’s Medicine Cabinet (SAM-C) Act sets "predictable guidelines" for the industry, along with incentivizing domestic drug manufacturing and giving agencies tools needed to protect U.S. patents from "unsafe Chinese drugs," the senators said.
Another proposed bill, the Protecting our Pharmaceutical Supply Chain from China Act, requires companies to disclose sources for active pharmaceutical ingredients, or APIs, many of which are made in China. This would allow the Food and Drug Administration to calculate how dependent American pharmaceutical companies are on Chinese products, Cotton and Blackburn wrote, and would prohibit VA hospitals, Medicare, and other federal health programs from buying drugs made with Chinese APIs.
The SAM-C Act also expands FDA programs to approve advanced manufacturing pharmaceutical technologies to prevent critical drug shortages and bring pharmaceutical manufacturing jobs back to the United States, while authorizing a $100 million budget for workforce development and training.
The CCP has control over the world's pharmaceutical supply, as well as medical equipment and other basic goods following decades of Western investment, failed engagement, and unfair trade tactics, they wrote.
"While the United States has invested heavily in drug discovery and development, China has prioritized pharmaceutical manufacturing, giving massive support to domestic producers to undercut foreign competitors," Blackburn and Cotton said.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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