ESSENTIAL MEDICAL INNOVATION AND MANUFACTURING MUST COME HOME TO AMERICA; Congressional Record Vol. 166, No. 170
(House of Representatives - September 30, 2020)
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[Page H5059]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
ESSENTIAL MEDICAL INNOVATION AND MANUFACTURING MUST COME HOME TO
AMERICA
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from
Pennsylvania (Mr. Joyce) for 5 minutes.
Mr. JOYCE of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, in 2020, America is facing
significant threats to our health, to our values, and to our national
security. The Chinese Communist Party has attempted to exert control
over every facet of America's economy and industry, and even our health
and safety.
The coronavirus has exposed that much of America's medical supply
chain, as it currently stands, runs directly through China. This should
concern every American. Why would we trust a regime that lies about a
pandemic to control our access to healthcare?
As a physician, I have long been concerned about the Chinese
Communist Government's near monopoly on the manufacturing of generic
medicines. And that threat doesn't stop there. We cannot allow the
Chinese Communist Party to control our access to prescription drugs and
the vital materials that are used in healthcare equipment, not to
mention PPE.
For the sake of American patients and our national security, we must
correct course and return the essential medical innovation and
manufacturing home to America and away from this hostile regime.
For months, the China Task Force has been working to identify
realistic and achievable solutions to secure our medical supply chain
and ensure that Americans are never beholden to the Chinese Communist
Party for our medicines and for our healthcare equipment. We are taking
a comprehensive approach to end America's reliance on China and bring
jobs home to America.
Our supply chain challenges extend beyond the healthcare regime. From
technology to manufacturing, too many materials that we rely on every
day are sourced from China.
Earlier this year, I introduced legislation that seeks to end
America's dependence on China for rare earth elements and other
critical minerals--these are essential, and they are used in the
manufacturing of medical supplies, defense technology, and high-tech
products--by establishing a supply chain for these materials here in
the United States. It is important for our survival into the upcoming
technology advancements that our country is so dependent on. It also
requires the Department of Defense to source these materials from
America.
Pennsylvania, my home, is home to a dedicated and highly skilled
workforce, and I am working on a plan to incentivize companies to bring
their research, the development, and the production of materials back
home.
As President Trump said earlier this month: ``We want to build
factories in Baltimore, not Beijing. We want to make our products in
Chicago, not Shanghai.'' And, I might add, we want to make medicines in
Chambersburg, not China.
Mr. Speaker, this is the fight of our lives, and we have a real
opportunity to make a difference. There is nothing partisan about
securing America's place as a leader in the 21st century. There is
nothing partisan about bringing jobs home to America. There is nothing
partisan about combating a hostile regime's overreach into American
lives.
This is not about Republicans or Democrats; this is about Americans.
I urge my colleagues from across the political spectrum to get behind
our commonsense solutions to counter the Chinese Communist Party and
protect our Nation.
It is simple. We must secure our supply chains. We must defeat China
in the race to the next-generation technology. We must prepare
Americans to succeed in the years to come.
From strengthening our supply chains and bringing jobs home to
America and to our allies, countering Chinese interference in our
educational institutions, we must take action. We must continue
fighting to defend the American people and equip America to lead the
way in the 21st century.
As I have said before on this floor, this is the fight of our
lifetime, and it is one that we certainly can win.
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