Former White House National Security Advisor: "US Must Reduce Dependence on Chinese-Made Pharmaceuticals"

Former McMaster Aide Co-Authors Op-Ed in WSJ

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Beijing=Special Correspondent Sunmi Park] Voices are growing that the United States needs to diversify its pharmaceutical supply chain, which has relied on China, to prevent the recurrence of epidemic situations.

Herbert McMaster, a senior fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution and former White House National Security Advisor under the Trump administration, co-authored an op-ed titled "Relying on Foreign Medicines is Risky" with physician Scott Atlas in the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) on the 28th (local time), arguing that "the United States needs to reduce its dependence on Chinese pharmaceuticals in light of the COVID-19 pandemic."

They pointed out that 40% of finished pharmaceuticals used in the U.S. and 80% of the pharmaceutical raw materials needed to make them are produced overseas, explaining, "Health security is very important to national security. This pandemic is an opportunity to reassess the overseas dependence on pharmaceutical raw material supply and strengthen the supply chain." They added, "The U.S. imports most generic drugs, including antibiotics, from India, and India imports 70% of those pharmaceutical raw materials from China," emphasizing, "The U.S. needs to understand and diversify its pharmaceutical supply sources."

The researchers advised, "To protect the U.S. pharmaceutical supply, preparations are especially needed against quality degradation and counterfeiting, chronic problems with Chinese products," adding, "The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) conducts 3,500 generic drug factory inspections annually, but unannounced inspections in China and India are extremely rare. More on-site access should be demanded, and funding and personnel increased."

This highlights the issue that, amid concerns over defective Chinese medical equipment supplied worldwide, Chinese pharmaceutical raw materials cannot be an exception.

There was also a claim that the U.S. should be wary of China's full-scale efforts in pharmaceutical development. They stated, "While the U.S. still leads significantly in final approved drug patents, China is emphasizing the creation of new pharmaceutical patents. The U.S., which leads the world in healthcare innovation, must not become complacent."

They further advised, "Policies should be aligned to encourage pharmaceutical innovation and production. The U.S. Congress should strengthen tax incentives for high-risk investments in pharmaceutical development companies, provide additional incentives for domestic pharmaceutical manufacturing, and expedite FDA drug approvals."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.