The United States House of Representatives passed the draft legislation of the Biosecurity Act (H.R.8333) with 306 votes in favor and 81 votes against. Wuxi AppTec, Wuxi Bio, and other companies strongly oppose it. The bill still needs to be voted on by the Senate and the versions passed by both houses need to be reconciled before it can be submitted to the President of the United States for signature into law.
The US House of Representatives passed the draft of the "Biological Safety Act" (H.R.8333) with 306 votes in favor and 81 votes against on the local time of the 9th.
Previously, the United States House Oversight and Reform Committee decided to advance the legislation of H.R.8333 with 40 votes in favor and 1 vote against during a hearing on May 15.
The legislation restricts the business dealings between the United States federal government and certain biotechnology providers under the guise of "national security".
The bill specifically names 5 Chinese "biotechnology companies of concern", including $WUXI APPTEC (02359.HK)$Please use your Futubull account to access the feature.$WUXI BIO (02269.HK)$Please use your Futubull account to access the feature.$BGI Genomics (300676.SZ)$ Group, $MGI Tech Co., Ltd. (688114.SH)$ and BGI Genomics subsidiary Complete Genomics.
The legislation allows the designated companies to continue fulfilling contracts funded by the U.S. federal government until 2032.
These Chinese companies deny that they pose a threat to the health data or national security of the United States.
The bill still needs to be voted on by the Senate, and the versions passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives need to be reconciled before it can be submitted to the President of the United States for signature into law.
It is worth mentioning that in this vote, Democratic Congressman Jim McGovern openly opposed the bill, claiming that the bill named companies without proper procedures. House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries also voted against it. While the Senate is controlled by the Democratic Party.
After the bill was passed, Wuxi Apptec responded quickly through an announcement in the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, strongly opposing this unfair and unreasonable designation without proper procedures. The company firmly believes that Wuxi Apptec has not, does not, and will not pose a national security risk to the United States or any other country in the past, present, and future, and the company has not been sanctioned by any U.S. government institution.
Wuxi Apptec reiterated that the company has no human genomics business, and its existing business does not involve the collection of human genomic data in the United States, China, or any other region.
Wuxi Bio also responded, stating that as a global biopharmaceutical CRDMO platform, the company has no human genomics business and has not collected human genomic data in any of its global businesses. The company firmly believes that it has not, does not, and will not pose a national security risk to the United States or any other country in the past, present, and future, and strongly opposes any unconfirmed predetermined designation without proper procedures. The company will continue to closely monitor the legislative process and maintain ongoing communication with relevant parties. The company is committed to serving global customers and operating in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations in all business areas.
Editor/Rocky