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Congressman Bill Posey’s (R-Rockledge) initiative to reduce American dependence on Chinese production of heparin was adopted into the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which passed the House last night with Posey’s support. Posey’s initiative will allow for an American-made source of heparin, encourage private capital to drive domestic development of this essential lifesaving drug, and take serious steps to end America's heparin shortage.
 
“Like many lifesaving medications, heparin is predominantly manufactured by China and has been subject to contamination issues and supply chain shortages,” said Congressman Posey. “Restoring American production of this essential medicine is important to the lives of Americans and our nation’s security. It’s unlikely to make the headlines, but this is a big step in reducing our dependence on China for essential lifesaving medicines.”
 
Heparin, which is currently sourced from pigs, is used daily by millions of Americans in dialysis, preventing blood clots, for surgeries and other medical procedures. In addition to controlling the production, China also subsequently bought up the U.S. pig supply and now controls almost 60 percent of the world's pigs, which has had dangerous repercussions for American patients. 
 
Earlier this century, Chinese-based companies pumped counterfeit blood-thinners into our domestic markets to make a quick buck, but tragically 81 Americans died, and many more Americans were injured. When U.S. Food and Drug Administration officials testified before Congress on the 2008 contamination crisis, they insisted that “we must also remember that this is an essential drug, and we can’t simply stop the heparin supply.” The Posey heparin provision is a commonsense initiative that will protect patients and secure a safe and abundant domestic supply of this essential medicine for our service members, seniors, and patients.
 
The NDAA includes dozens of provisions that Congressman Posey fought for that aim to ensure that our military leadership focuses less on misguided social policies and more on equipping, training, and supporting our troops.