ICYMI – Hill: 'This isn't a Trump thing'

Washington, April 9, 2020
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, the Washington Examiner quoted Rep. French Hill (AR-02) regarding the need to protect America's national security from China's interests by diversifying the United States' medical supply chain. Last week, Hill introduced H.R. 6399, the Securing America’s Vaccines for Emergencies (SAVE) Act, which would address this threat to national security by amending the Defense Production Act (DPA) to use its authority to ensure the availability of medical equipment, making the United States less dependent on foreign manufacturers, such as China.

The excerpt is as follows: 

"America has been caught unprepared," Rep. Hill told the Washington Examiner. "It's not a Trump thing. It's a federal government thing."

Rep. Hill argued a stronger supply chain based in America is a matter of national security.

"We could have improved our level of communication with our governors and with the process," Rep. Hill said. "We would have been better coordinating large purchases through (the Department of Defense) or FEMA."

"This [pandemic] will fundamentally change global relations with China," Rep. Hill said. "China has become a rival to U.S. interests rather than a global economic player."

To read the full article, click HERE.


Background on the Securing America’s Vaccines for Emergencies (SAVE) Act. 

The full text of H.R. 6399 can be found HERE. Specifically, the bill: 

(1) Outlines that the president should use DPA authorities to ensure the availability of medical articles essential to national defense, specifically as it relates to securing our supply chains. 

(2) Clarifies that the president may provide incentives to ensure the availability of medical articles essential for national defense.

(3) Requires the president to create a strategy on securing medical article supply chains, including for drugs that diagnose, cure, mitigate, treat, or prevent disease.

(4) Provides the president explicit authority to use the DPA to protect supply chains by allowing entities to increase the security of supply chains and their activities.

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