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We need stronger medical supply chains to end national drug shortage
U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL)
May 28, 2023
Washington Times
Last fall, parents lived in fear as common antibiotics like amoxicillin went out of stock. Now, our nation is experiencing another dangerous supply chain shortage…. Medication for breast cancer and leukemia, adenosine used to treat heart disease, and critical antibiotics are all in short supply….
The core problem is a familiar one: our leaders spent decades encouraging industry to consolidate and offshore…. Today, about 70 percent of generic drug production and about 90 percent of generic active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) production takes place overseas. The vast majority of that production is traceable to China. Meanwhile, widespread consolidation and integration of pharmaceutical intermediaries, like wholesalers and group purchasing organizations, has enabled just a few actors to dictate drug prices. Together, these factors have hollowed out what should be one of our strongest industries….
[In addition, my prediction] that the drug price controls enacted by the Inflation Reduction Act would “remove the incentive to produce innovative therapeutics for patients in dire need” [was accurate]. Unfortunately, not only did innovation slow, but the law prompted “a ‘race to the bottom’ in price” that made “expanding production…not economically viable.”
There is still time to get things right, though. We can start by passing the bipartisan Ensuring Timely Access to Generics Act. We can…pass my legislation, which would encourage companies that currently produce medical and pharmaceutical equipment abroad to relocate to the U.S. And we can repeal the Inflation Reduction Act’s deadly price controls….