Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

Healthcare

Marco Rubio, Mike Waltz Introduce Bill to Reduce U.S. Dependency on China for Medical Supplies

Last week, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., brought out a bill to “combat America’s dependence on China for pharmaceuticals and to address associated supply chain risks that lead to shortages of critical drugs” that U.S. Rep. Mike Waltz, R-Fla., will champion in the U.S. House.

Rubio’s office insisted that the “Further Strengthening America’s Supply Chains and National Security Act” would follow up on a report he crafted in 2019. That year, Rubio unveiled “Made in China 2025 and the Future of American Industry” in which he “detailed critical vulnerabilities in America’s medical supply chain” and warned of America’s overreliance on China for pharmaceutical production.” Rubio’s office insisted that COVID pandemic only confirmed those warnings.

“The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted how vulnerable America’s supply chains are. Three years later, we continue to be victims of a pharmaceutical supply chain that has been sent overseas. We cannot continue down this path; that is why I am introducing the Further Strengthening America’s Supply Chains and National Security Act to put an end to America’s dependence on other countries for key drugs,” said Rubio.

U.S. Sens. Kevin Cramer, R-ND, and Mike Rounds, R-SD, are co-sponsoring the bill.

Waltz will introduce the bill in the House.

“Every day, thousands of Americans are struggling to fill their already overpriced prescriptions thanks to the drug shortages plaguing our country. To combat these shortages and skyrocketing drug prices, we must identify our supply chain vulnerabilities and build out a domestic capacity to produce high-quality, domestic pharmaceuticals. For the health and safety of Americans, our medical supply chains cannot continue to be in the hands of foreign entities, including our adversaries like China. We must demand more transparency over the manufacturing and quality of the drugs we import. That’s why I am proud to work with Senator Rubio to address these problems and fight to bring our drug supply chains home,” said Waltz.

The bill “closes the loophole created by the court decision in Acetris Health, LLC v. United States that allowed drugs with foreign active ingredients to qualify for government procurement as though they were drugs made in the United States; amends the foreign inspection risk factor list to improve oversight of facilities in China and other countries with questionable drug manufacturing quality standards; and requires drug makers to share more information with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration about where pharmaceutical ingredients are sourced.”

Rubio’s bill was sent to the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

Author

  • Kevin Derby

    Originally from Jacksonville, Kevin Derby is a contributing writer for Florida Daily and covers politics across Florida.

    View all posts

Archives

Related Articles

Florida Government & Politics

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has appointed James Uthmeier, his former chief of staff, as the new attorney general. Uthmeier, 37, was sworn in during...

Political News

With bipartisan support, Florida Senator Rick Scott (R) co-introduced a bill with Sen. Maggie Hassan, (D – NH) to reduce America’s reliance on China...

Political News

UPDATE: Ashley Moody was officially sworn-in as a US Senator, joining fellow Florida Republican Senator Rick Scott. Earlier today, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis announced...

Political News

Marco Rubio is being interviewed today at a Senate Confirmation Hearing for his nomination as US Secretary of State. Rubio’s tenure in the Senate...

Advertisement
Florida Daily
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

HOW WE COLLECT E-MAIL INFORMATION:

If you sign up to subscribe to Florida Daily’s e-mail newsletter, you will provide us your e-mail address and name, voluntarily, and we will never obtain any of your contact information that you don’t voluntarily provide.

HOW WE USE AN E-MAIL ADDRESS IF YOU VOLUNTARILY PROVIDE IT TO US:

If you voluntarily provide us with your name and email address, we will use it to send you one email update per weekday. Your email address will not be given to any third parties.

YOUR CONTROLS:

You will have the option to unsubscribe to our E-mail update at anytime by clicking an unsubscribe link that will be provided in each E-Mail we send.