Garamendi Actions Support President Biden’s Executive Order to Strengthen Supply Chains for Essential Goods

WASHINGTON, DC—Today, Congressman John Garamendi (D-CA) applauded President Biden's Executive Order to secure domestic supply chains for essential goods. The new Executive Order addresses the lack of domestic supply of essential products for American consumers—from medicine to computer chips to personal protective equipment (PPE) in the fight against COVID-19. The Executive Order also addresses vulnerabilities in our nation's over-reliance on foreign producers, like China.

The Executive Order addresses several issues Congressman Garamendi has prioritized through his Make it in America agenda by correcting supply chain vulnerabilities in:

1. Pharmaceuticals and active pharmaceutical agreements (API): These are the ingredients in pharmaceutical products that contain the active drug. More than 70 percent of active pharmaceutical ingredients needed for generic and prescription drugs sold to the United States are produced overseas, according to the White House. President Biden's Executive Order will address vulnerabilities in the global pharmaceutical supply chain and support the Administration and Congressman's ongoing work to secure supply chains needed to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

Garamendi has fought to address concerns in the U.S. pharmaceutical supply chain by introducing the bipartisan "Pharmaceutical Independence Long-Term Readiness Reform Act" (H.R. 4710) with Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler (R-MO) in the 116^th Congress. This bill is part of Garamendi's "Make it in America" agenda and required the Department of Defense to identify the vulnerabilities faced by our country's dependence on Chinese pharmaceuticals, and to only purchase American-made raw materials, medicines, and vaccines for the military. Key provisions from Garamendi's bipartisan bill were signed into law as part of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (Public Law 116-283)​

2. Critical minerals, including rare earths: Critical minerals are an essential part of defense, high-tech, and other products. From rare earth elements in electronics to the carbon fiber used for aircraft, the United States has become dangerously dependent upon foreign sources or single suppliers of critical minerals, which are vulnerable during national emergencies. President Biden's Executive Order will help address this overdependency and lead to a more robust U.S. supply chain for critical minerals.

As Chairman of the Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness, Garamendi worked with Congresswoman Liz Cheney (R-WY) to include a key provision in the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (Public Law 116-283) requiring the Pentagon to identify the critical materials, including rare earth elements, the U.S. military needs, and work to fix the vulnerabilities in supply chains of such materials. This new law also requires an evaluation of the domestic processing and manufacturing capacity needed to supply these strategic and critical materials. These efforts will also support American manufacturing and the creation of new middle-class jobs.

"Strengthening the security and reliability of U.S. supply chains has been one of my focuses in Congress, and I applaud President Biden for taking strong action to secure America's critical supply chains through this Executive Order," Garamendi said. "As Chairman of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness, and a proponent for ‘Make it in America' policies in Congress, I recognize how critical it is to shore up domestic supply chains for our national security interests, and to revitalize American manufacturing.

"In Congress, I've worked in a bipartisan manner to address vulnerabilities pertaining to Americans and the American economy because of our overdependence on foreign-produced pharmaceuticals and critical minerals. President Biden's Executive Order is precisely what our nation needs to secure domestic supply chains for essential products to prevent shortages and spur the creation of thousands of new, good-paying manufacturing jobs right here in the USA. I will continue to support these policies through my work in Congress," Garamendi concluded.

President Biden's Executive Order on America's Supply Chains can be viewed here.