U.S. legislation that would sever ties with Chinese drugmakers would jeopardize the drug supply for millions of American patients if it’s passed, the biotechnology industry’s main trade group has told Congress.
Congress is considering legislation, called the BIOSECURE Act, that would make it difficult for Chinese contract development and manufacturing organizations to do business with biotechnology companies that work with the U.S. federal government. Biotechs hire Chinese CDMOs, as they’re often called, for services that include product manufacturing, development, formulation, packaging, and distribution.
The BIOSECURE Act would stop the federal government from contracting with, or providing grants to, companies that do business with so-called Chinese “companies of concern.” The impact of the legislation would depend in large part on who is in the White House. The White House’s Office of Management and Budget would determine which companies are blacklisted, but a handful of specific companies would automatically go on that list, including the biotech giant WuXi AppTec.
