[Washington Examiner] The Trump administration announced a $354 million drug contract with a generic medicine manufacturing company providing "immediate U.S.-based capacity" to produce pharmaceutical ingredients and expand advanced manufacturing capacity, reducing reliance on overseas supply chains.
Phlow Corporation will lead the effort, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said in a statement. The Virginia-based company is also planning a new manufacturing facility in-state.
"This is a national security issue," Hastings Center health expert and Phlow board member Rosemary Gibson said in an interview with the Washington Examiner. "Medicines are our defensive weapons in biowarfare. We can't rely on foreign sources."
She added: "To not act is to make the U.S. defenseless."
Active pharmaceutical ingredients and precursor chemicals for crucial drugs are typically manufactured overseas, often in India or China, leaving the U.S. supply chain exposed during events that lead to drug shortages. |