In a stunning revelation, a congressional committee has uncovered that U.S. drug companies have been working with the Chinese military on drug tests for over ten years. This shocking news came to light in a letter sent to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Monday.
The House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, made up of both Republican and Democratic leaders, sent this urgent letter to FDA Commissioner Robert Califf. They are demanding to know more about these secretive drug trials.
Chairman John Moolenaar (R-Mich.) and other committee members—Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), Neal Dunn (R-Fla.), and Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.)—warned that these partnerships with the Chinese military could put important U.S. technology and intellectual property at risk. They fear that Chinese laws could allow the military to steal this information or use it in ways that might harm U.S. interests.
The letter reveals that hundreds of these trials have taken place in China, including at military hospitals and medical centers linked to the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA). This includes research facilities like the PLA’s General Hospital and Medical School, the Air Force Medical University, and the Academy of Military Medical Sciences. One of these trials is even working on a cutting-edge treatment for Alzheimer’s disease.
But the concerns don’t stop there. Some of these trials have been conducted in Xinjiang, a region known for severe human rights abuses against the Uyghur population. Reports suggest that Uyghurs in Xinjiang have been subjected to forced labor and even worse atrocities in “re-education camps.” The committee worries that U.S. companies might be unintentionally benefiting from drug trial data collected under such dire circumstances.
The committee is questioning whether the FDA has properly reviewed these trials and how much it knows about the extent of the U.S. drug companies’ collaborations with the Chinese military. They have set a deadline of October 1st for the FDA to respond.
In response, the FDA has acknowledged receiving the letter and promised to reply directly to the congressional committee.
This news raises serious questions about the safety and ethics of international collaborations in drug testing and the potential risks to U.S. national security.
