Reliance on Chinese Medical Supply Chains a ‘National Security Threat’: Josh Hawley

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) at a hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington on Sept. 13, 2022. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) is pushing for terminating America’s dependence on Chinese drug imports, warning that China poses a security threat.

“We are dependent on China overwhelmingly for our critical medical supply chains,” Hawley said in an April 2 interview on Fox News. “You talk about being dependent, you talk about a national security threat, that’s a national security threat.”

Hawley said this is a direct threat to U.S. independence and to the health of Americans, and that 60 percent of the key precursors for pharmaceutical drugs are made in China or India.

“We should make these drugs, including the precursors, in the United States of America,“ he said. ”We can start by withdrawing China’s ’most favored nation' status, the sweetheart trade deal that we gave them 20 years ago.”

The “most favored nation” status granted by the Senate to China requires the United States to offer preferential treatment in tariffs and trade deals to Beijing.

Hawley pointed out that during the COVID-19 outbreak, the Chinese regime had threatened to withhold a precursor drug critical for cancer treatments. If Beijing had gone ahead with the decision, the supply of these drugs would have been reduced by half at the Department of Veterans Affairs hospitals across the country.

Drug Shortages and Foreign Dependence

Hawley’s comments come as the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs released a report (pdf) highlighting the critical situation of drug supply in the United States. Between 2021 and 2022, new drug shortages in the country rose by almost 30 percent.

By the end of last year, there were 295 active drug shortages, the highest level during the previous five years. The average drug shortage was found to last for about a year and a half. But for 15 critical drug products, the shortages were found to be going on for more than a decade.

“Shortages continue to have devastating consequences for patients and health care providers, including medication errors and treatment delays, and in some cases, have led to doctors having to ration lifesaving treatments,” the report said.

The report pointed to “overreliance on foreign and geographically concentrated sources” for key drugs as well as limited domestic manufacturing capabilities as creating “health and national security risks.”

The number of China-based manufacturers of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) that registered with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration between 2010 and 2015 “more than doubled.”

The Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response has estimated that 90 to 95 percent of generic sterile injectable drugs that are used for critical acute care in the United States are reliant on “key starting materials” sourced from China and India.

In 2019, a report by Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.) noted that almost 80 percent of manufacturing facilities producing API are located outside the United States.

The Senate report called for more domestic investment to protect America’s drug supply chains.

“The federal government should build upon its efforts to engage industry and academic partners through private-public partnerships that incentivize strategic onshoring and advanced domestic manufacturing technologies for critical generic drugs.”

Ending China’s Preferential Trade Deal

On March 20, Hawley’s office announced a bill called the “Ending Normal Trade Relations with China Act” in a bid to protect working class American and reduce dependency. He also proposed placing “strong tariffs” on Chinese imports.

“Providing China privileged trade status contributed to the loss of 3.7 million good jobs across manufacturing industries in America. When these jobs and factories disappeared, communities suffered,” the announcement said.

“The unwinding of the social fabric in these forgotten places led to declining rates of marriage and fertility, and rising rates of addiction, divorce, and suicide. Policies that weaken working men and women in America and enrich the Chinese Communist Party must be repealed.”

Describing China as America’s “greatest adversary,” Hawley called for returning the United States back to its “long-standing formula” for success, which involves “strong and independent workers.”