BISMARCK – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) joined U.S. Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Mike Rounds (R-SD) in introducing the Further Strengthening America’s Supply Chains and National Security Act. This bill seeks to address the growing impacts of generic drug shortages and strengthen the supply chain of high-quality, domestically produced pharmaceuticals.

“Just like energy and critical minerals, we have shifted too much of our medical supply chains to China and India,” said Senator Cramer. “Instead, we should prioritize pharmaceutical and ingredient production here at home. This bill supports patient access to the drugs they need from American manufacturers.”

“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 Senator Rubio.

“We should never risk American lives by allowing our foreign adversaries, like China, to have control over critical parts of our pharmaceutical supply chain. The Strengthening America’s Supply Chain and National Security Act will decrease our reliance on other countries to produce pharmaceuticals and increase control over our own supply chain for these life-saving drugs. I’m glad to be partnering with Senator Rubio and our colleagues on this legislation,” said Senator Rounds.

Specifically, the Further Strengthening America’s Supply Chains and National Security Act would:

  • Close the loophole created by the court decision in Acetris Health, LLC v. United States that allowed drugs with foreign Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API) to qualify for government procurement as though they were drugs made in the United States.
  • Require drug makers to share more information about their API production with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, such as the volume of APIs derived from each of their sources in the previous year.
  • Amend the foreign inspection risk factor list to improve oversight of facilities in China, India, and other countries with questionable quality standards of their drug manufacturing.

Click here to read the bill.