U.S. Reps. John Joyce (R-PA) and David Trone (D-MD) introduced bills to strengthen the nation’s national security and improve its medical infrastructure.
One of the bills is the Strengthening Our Health Security Through Resilient Medical Supply Chains Annual Review Act. This legislation would require the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to complete an annual report to assess the nation’s dependence on critical devices, supplies, and drugs sourced outside of the United States. Further, it would provide recommendations to strengthen domestic medical supply chains, including encouraging domestic production of these items.
“From my years in business, I know just how important it is to have a dependable supply chain,” Trone said. “This pandemic has shown us that our medical supply chain in the United States is in need of repair. The Strengthening our Health Security Through Resilient Medical Supply Chains Annual Review Act will allow us to create a supply chain that can withstand future public health crises and will create jobs in the process. I’d like to thank Congressman Joyce for working with me on this critical legislation.”
The other is the Genome Editing Threat Assessment Act. This bill will require the Assistant Secretary for Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Office of the Department of Homeland Security to develop a threat assessment on the vulnerabilities and provide recommendations.
“In the last five years alone, scientists have made remarkable advances in biotechnology, particularly in the area of genomics,” Joyce, who serves on the House Homeland Security Committee, said. “As our nation fights the coronavirus crisis, it is critical that we prepare for a new wave of biological threats. I am proud to introduce the Genome Editing Threat Assessment Act alongside Congressman Trone to ensure that the United States stands ready to combat any and all malicious actors and biothreats.”
The assessment should include the dual-use of emerging biotechnology; the ability of gene editing to maliciously proliferate infectious diseases and pandemics on human, animal, and plant populations; the cybersecurity vulnerabilities in computer systems analyzing genomic data; and, the privacy concerns associated with analyzing genomic data.