The Republican leadership in the U.S. House of Representatives is planning to vote on a series of bills targeting Chinese companies early next month. One of the bills includes a measure to prohibit federal contractors from doing business with five Chinese biotechnology companies.
According to Bloomberg, multiple sources have reported that the Republican leadership notified the Republican congressional offices via email on Thursday, August 29, that the House of Representatives is expected to vote on legislation targeting Chinese companies, such as the Biosecure Act, when lawmakers return to work on September 9 after summer recess.
House Speaker Mike Johnson previewed some of the legislation last month, expressing concerns that business relationships with Chinese biotechnology companies would allow federal contractors to be manipulated by American adversaries, threatening the healthcare data of Americans.
The Biosecure Act is a bill introduced against the backdrop of U.S.-China tensions. Lawmakers in both the House and Senate have expressed worries in their respective drafts of the legislation about the reliance on Chinese companies for the production of critical drugs, intellectual property, and genomic data protection. They warned that the Chinese Communist Party poses a threat to the U.S. economy and national security.
In January of this year, the U.S. House of Representatives China Task Force proposed the Biosecure Act, a bipartisan bill that seeks to prevent the U.S. federal government from subsidizing equipment or services provided by designated Chinese biotechnology service providers outlined in the bill, to protect national security and prevent high-risk Chinese enterprises from operating in the U.S.
The bill identifies five companies as “concerning biotechnology companies,” including BGI Group, MGI, Complete Genomics, WuXi AppTec, and WuXi Biologics.
In the preamble of the bill, the co-sponsors stated that the Chinese military has invested in advancing its biotechnology and artificial intelligence capabilities, and by collaborating with commercial companies, China can access genetic data of millions of Americans.
In May, the Biosecure Act passed the House Oversight Committee by a vote of 40-1.
The Senate version of the Biosecure Act was proposed in December 2023, and in March of this year, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee submitted the final draft of the Senate version of the Biosecure Act with an 11-1 vote to the Senate. Senators have been considering incorporating the bill into the Senate’s annual defense policy legislation.
The market reacted swiftly to the introduction of the bill. According to a Wall Street Journal report in February, following the news, WuXi AppTec and WuXi Biologics saw a $20 billion loss in their total market value in Hong Kong, with stocks plummeting to their lowest levels since 2019.
The bill is still in the early stages of the legislative process. Before it can be signed into law by the U.S. president, it must undergo review and pass both the House and Senate. However, due to strong bipartisan support for the bill, its final passage is highly anticipated.
Sources mentioned that lawmakers were also informed that there are expected to be votes on other bills restricting business dealings with Chinese companies, including legislation targeting the Chinese electric vehicle supply chain.