HR2213-119

What This Bill Does

The Medical Supply Chain Resiliency Act creates a trade-agreement framework for medical goods after COVID-19 supply disruptions. It covers medical devices, pharmaceutical goods, and inputs, and lets the President negotiate trusted trade partner agreements when reciprocal elimination of duties or import restrictions would contribute to U.S. national security and public health. Before negotiation, the President must consider whether a country supports global health security, maintains open medical-goods trade during emergencies, honors free trade commitments, reduces trade barriers, protects intellectual property, follows rule-of-law principles, and promotes good regulatory practices. Agreements may reduce duties, expand supplier networks, harmonize regulatory procedures, improve procurement access, facilitate R&D data flows, support manufacturing capacity, and exempt partners from emergency trade-restrictive measures. Congress receives 60-day negotiation notice, USTR consultations, access to documents, reports before agreements take effect, 30-day review periods that can be extended, and a joint-resolution disapproval mechanism. USTR must monitor compliance and can recommend suspension, withdrawal, compensatory benefits, or other enforcement actions, which the President must implement within 15 days after deciding to act.

Who Benefits and How

U.S. health care providers benefit if trusted trade agreements diversify supplies of medical devices, drugs, and inputs during emergencies. Medical device manufacturers benefit from reduced duties, regulatory cooperation, procurement access, and manufacturing-capacity incentives with trusted partners. Pharmaceutical manufacturers benefit from tariff relief, intellectual-property protection, data-flow facilitation, and regulatory harmonization. Trusted trade partner countries benefit from potential duty elimination, procurement-market access, and exemption from emergency medical-goods trade restrictions. Congressional trade committees benefit from notice, consultations, document access, review periods, and disapproval procedures.

Who Bears the Burden and How

The President must justify negotiations, report every 180 days, submit agreement reports, and decide enforcement responses. USTR staff must negotiate agreements, consult committees, provide documents, monitor compliance, and recommend enforcement actions. HHS trade experts must be consulted during medical-goods negotiations. Nontrusted supplier countries may lose market opportunities if U.S. trade policy shifts toward trusted partners. Trusted partner governments must maintain open trade, regulatory practices, intellectual-property protection, and compliance with agreement obligations.

Key Provisions

• Authorizes trusted trade partner agreements for medical devices, pharmaceutical goods, and inputs.
• Allows duty, quota, and import-barrier reductions when they support national security and public health.
• Requires presidential findings on global health security, open emergency trade, rule of law, intellectual-property protection, and regulatory practices.
• Requires 60-day congressional notice, USTR consultations, document access, reports, review periods, and possible joint-resolution disapproval.
• Directs USTR compliance monitoring and presidential enforcement choices including suspension, withdrawal, compensatory benefits, or other actions.