After BIOSECURE Act passes in House, targeted Chinese companies say they’re ‘deeply’ concerned

After much anticipation and concern, the BIOSECURE Act—which would prevent U.S. companies from working with certain Chinese biotech service providers—has passed a key threshold. Late Monday, the U.S. House of Representatives voted 306-81 in favor of the bill, which was introduced in January and seeks to halt federal contracts with five named Chinese life-sci companies—WuXi AppTec, WuXi Biologics, BGI Group, MGI and Complete Genomics—over alleged national security concerns. The bill gained wide bipartisan support on the House floor, though nearly all lawmakers who voted against it were Democrats, BioSpace reports.

With the bill having passed through the House, it will now be up to the Senate to decide on the fate of the BIOSECURE Act. Still, the most likely route for the bill to become law would involve tucking BIOSECURE into a larger legislative vehicle, such as the annual defense bill or government funding legislation, according to Stat.

The companies named in the bill have been quick to defend themselves in recent months. Naturally, they’re none too pleased with the latest development in Congress. “WuXi AppTec is disappointed in the House’s vote on the proposed BIOSECURE Act, which pre-emptively and unjustifiably designates our company without due process,” WuXi AppTec said in an emailed statement. “We and many across the pharmaceutical and life sciences industry are deeply concerned about the legislation’s impact on U.S. leadership in biotechnology innovation, drug development, and patient care, as well as the implications for the costs of care and life-saving and other vital medications,” the research giant added.

Complete Genomics, for its part, said it was “deeply disappointed but not entirely surprised” that geopolitics, rather than facts, drove the House passage of the BIOSECURE Act. In turn, the Senate will have to spend the final months of the session working to fix “this broken and flawed bill,” the genomics company continued. Despite support for the BIOSECURE Act in Washington, industry watchers have raised concerns about the complicated work that would be required for U.S. and European drugmakers to untangle themselves from their Chinese contractor partners. The current version of the bill would require drugmakers to sever ties with the named Chinese contractors by 2032 to retain their positions on Medicare and Medicaid, which serve as crucial sales drivers for many pharmaceutical companies.

Among those who opposed the bill, Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Massachusetts, ranking member on the House Rules committee, was quick to make his concerns known. Over the weekend, he told Reuters that the process for including named companies in the legislation was inconsistent and that he could not get a clear explanation about WuXi Biologics’ inclusion.

In a post on X Monday night, McGovern admitted he has “very serious concerns” about China’s efforts to exploit the U.S. biopharma industry, steal sensitive information and endanger national security. Nevertheless, he branded the BIOSECURE Act a “weak bill” that could “actually make the problem even worse. “McGovern voted “no” on the bill Monday night and urged his colleagues to do the same.

Despite uncertainty over the future of the bill, a certain degree of reputational damage has already been done, as evinced by a recent L.E.K. Consulting survey. The group recently found that the bill had dramatically undermined U.S.-based life science companies’ confidence in working with Chinese firms.

U.S. companies were most concerned about working with Chinese CDMOs, followed by contract research organizations and drug development partners, according to L.E.K.’s poll.