Calls for Removing Toomey Amendment that Undercuts Buy America Efforts
WASHINGTON — The Coalition for a Prosperous America (CPA) today applauded the Senate passage of the Make PPE in America Act (S. 1306), bipartisan legislation introduced by U.S. Senators Rob Portman (R-OH) and Gary Peters (D-MI) that will strengthen efforts to onshore production of personal protective equipment (PPE) in the United States by requiring federal agencies to issue long-term contracts for American-made PPE. The bill was included as part of the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act of 2021 (S. 1260) that passed the Senate today by a vote of 68 to 32.
However, the inclusion of Senator Pat Toomey’s (R-PA) bill to eliminate all tariffs on PPE directly undercuts the purpose of the Make PPE in America Act. CPA opposes Toomey’s amendment, which would sabotage U.S. manufacturing of these vital health care supplies and should be opposed by all who want to rebuild the U.S. health care manufacturing industry to safeguard the health of the American public. As the House of Representatives considers the Senate-passed legislation, CPA urges lawmakers to remove this harmful provision that would undercut efforts to maximize the U.S. content in the goods and services that federal agencies buy directly or support through assistance to states or private companies.
“Today, the Senate took a critical step towards strengthening the domestic production of PPE and the resilience of this critical supply chain,” said Michael Stumo, CEO of CPA. “However, by also passing Senator Toomey’s bill to remove all tariffs on foreign-made PPE, the Senate severely undercut the important efforts of the bipartisan Make PPE in America Act. At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, headline after headline about poorly made and defective imported Chinese PPE dominated the news. If Congress is serious about onshoring production of PPE and supporting American-made products, they will strip out the harmful Toomey amendment that is nothing more than a giveaway to foreign producers in China.”
Last month, CPA applauded the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee (HSGAC) for approving three bipartisan bills that strengthen Buy America rules more than any legislation has in decades, including the Make PPE in America Act. Read more from CPA on why these bipartisan bills are a major positive in expanding Buy America rules to all federal assistance.
