BIOSECURE Act not included in key defense spending bill for 2025

On December 7, 2024, the Biden administration revealed the 2025 National Defense Authorization Act, an annual defense bill specifying the budget and expenditures of the US Department of Defense. The controversial BIOSECURE Act was notably missing from this year’s text. 

The BIOSECURE Act, first introduced to Congress in January 2024, received widespread support from both Republicans and Democrats, passing through the US House of Representatives in September with 306-81 votes in favour of legislation. However, the bill must still pass through the US Senate before being signed into law by the President.  

The 2025 National Defense Authorization Act was seen as the easiest way for the bill to pass into law. Though its exclusion from the final text means it will likely pass to the incoming Trump administration to deal with in the coming year, the BIOSECURE Act still has a chance to pass through Congress this year should it be included in a continuing resolution to be decided on December 20. This continuing resolution would allow federal operations to continue while final terms for the defense bill are put into place. 

While the initial vote was overwhelmingly in favour of the Act, many of those opposed were Democratic representatives, and several high-ranking lawyers have since voiced opposition. Representative Jim McGovern, D-Massachusetts, stated in a post on X that while he had “very serious concerns” about China’s potential exploitation of the US biopharmaceutical sector, he called the Act a “weak bill” that would “make problems worse”. 

Additionally, if the Act does pass onto the next administration for implementation, it may face a tougher time making the legislative cut. Senator Rand Paul from Kentucky is billed to chair the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and was one of a few Republicans who voted in opposition in the initial vote. Concerns included hidden anti-competition motivations and potential disruptions to an already delicate pharmaceutical supply chain. 

The pharmaceutical industry itself has made its stance clear on the bill – a majority of 280 drugmakers surveyed in a CPHI industry research report said they did not support the bill, citing threats to the supply chain and disruptions to drug manufacturing pipelines. 

Sources: 

[1] Biosecure Act MIA from US defense bill in key win for China biopharma service providers [Accessed December 17, 2024] https://www.fiercepharma.com/pharma/biosecure-act-mia-us-defense-bill-key-win-china-biotech-service-providers  

[2] CPHI Annual Report 2024 [Accessed December 17, 2024] https://www.cphi-online.com/the-cphi-annual-report-2024-once-again-highlights-file151354.html