US Onshoring Essential Antibiotics Act Seeks to Re-Localize Production of Essential Antibiotics

WASHINGTON, D.C., United States – United States Senators Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Tina Smith (D-MN) have introduced the Onshoring Essential Antibiotics Act, bipartisan legislation seeking to invest in the U.S.’s supply chain for critical antibiotics while simultaneously addressing the rising threat of antibiotic resistance.

Under the Act, $500 million would be provided through grants to improve the domestic supply chain of essential generic antibodies by expanding, upgrading, or recommissioning existing U.S.-based manufacturing facilities, as well as constructing new facilities, and the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) would be allowed to stockpile domestically produced essential antibiotics.

Furthermore, the Act would provide $2 million for a study to determine which essential antibiotics are most at risk of foreign supply chain disruptions.

The Act came together due to the impact of the ongoing COVID-19 Pandemic on global supply chains, which exacerbated long-standing shortages of generic antibiotics and only further exposed vulnerabilities in the supply chain. An over-reliance on other countries for key ingredients and finished forms of antibiotics leads to unpredictable shortages and, therefore, hospitals and health care practitioners must rely on common antibiotics that attack all kinds of bacteria to treat infections, as opposed to targeted antibiotics.

Speaking on the impact of the pandemic, Senator Cassidy commented, “China cutting off our supply of antibiotics during a pandemic, like they did with PPE, would be catastrophic. This legislation brings production back to the U.S., creating jobs and strengthening our defense against future outbreaks.”

Senator Smith added, “We ought to be able to produce essential antibiotics that Americans need here on U.S. soil. This is an issue of public health and national security. By strengthening our country’s capacity to manufacture and store critical drugs, we’ll have more certainty and resources to promote public health during the pandemic and beyond.”