Rubio Reintroduces Bill to Reignite Puerto Rico's Pharmaceutical Industry
Press Release
U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) reintroduced the Medical Manufacturing, Economic Development, and Sustainability (MMEDS) Act, which would encourage companies currently producing medical devices and pharmaceuticals abroad to relocate to the U.S. The bill would enact a tax credit applicable to federal income tax liability for wages and eligible pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities, including enhanced benefits for re-patriated facilities, in economically distressed zones, including Puerto Rico.
Last year, Rubio introduced bipartisan legislation to combat America's supply chain risk and dependence on China for pharmaceuticals that builds off the plan he released in February 2020. In 2019, Rubio issued a report detailing critical vulnerabilities in America's medical supply chain, warning, "the U.S. runs the risk of losing important components of its medical supply chain to China's government-backed industry." Rubio warned in Modern Healthcare that when it comes to the threat China poses to America's healthcare industry, we cannot afford to be complacent.
Representative Jenniffer González-Colón (R-PR) joined Senator Rubio to reintroduce companion legislation in the House of Representatives.
Rubio is a member of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.
"Our nation has learned the hard way of what it means to be beholden to China's manufacturing capacity, especially in our medical industry," Rubio said. "Following the global COVID-19 pandemic, we must encourage companies currently producing medical and pharmaceutical equipment abroad to relocate to the U.S. I am proud to once again join Congresswoman González-Colón to strengthen Puerto Rico's vibrant pharmaceutical manufacturing potential."
"With its well-established medical equipment and its manufacturing infrastructure, as well as its highly trained workforce, Puerto Rico is poised to play a leading role in creating a reliable national supply chain, if manufacturers are properly incentivized to establish operations on American soil," Congresswoman Jenniffer González Colón said. "I thank Senator Marco Rubio for continuing to promote this initiative that benefits all American citizens."
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