Biden Administration Prioritizing Domestic Production of Pharmaceuticals . . . Again?
On November 27, the Administration announced another blue-ribbon panel to bolster the domestic manufacturing of pharmaceuticals. This one is called the Supply Chain Resilience Council. Co-chairs of the Council are Lael Brainard, Director of the White House National Economic Council, and Jake Sullivan, the White House National Security Advisor. Among the other 25 Council members are multiple agency Secretaries; the U.S. Trade Representative; the Chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers; and the Directors of National Intelligence, the Office of Management and Budget, and the Office of Science and Technology Policy. The Council does not include any industry representatives.
A major part of the Council’s plan to bolster domestic manufacturing is providing the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) with expanded authorities under Title III of the Defense Production Act (“DPA”) to invest in domestic manufacturing of essential medicines, medical countermeasures, and other critical inputs deemed crucial for national security. HHS will be granted DPA authority beyond what it was given during the COVID pandemic.
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