AHA Urges Senate Committee on Finance to Address Critical Supply Chain Vulnerabilities

On May 14, the American Hospital Association (AHA) made a statement for the United States Senate Committee on Finance on “Trade in Critical Supply Chains.”

Key highlights of the statement include:

• Severe supply chain vulnerabilities: U.S. hospitals rely heavily on international sources for essential pharmaceuticals and medical devices. Disruptions—caused by natural disasters, geopolitical issues, or manufacturing breakdowns—pose serious threats to patient care, with over 270 drugs currently in shortage.
• Substantial dependence on imports: Nearly 70% of U.S. medical devices are manufactured overseas, and a large proportion of active pharmaceutical ingredients are sourced from China and India, making domestic production vulnerable to international trade and production disruptions.
• Rising costs and financial strain: Tariffs on imported medical goods significantly raise hospital operating costs, worsen shortages, delay upgrades, and threaten hospital financial viability—especially as Medicare and Medicaid underpayments continue to increase.

The AHA urges maintaining and expanding tariff exceptions for critical medical products to avoid access disruptions. It also supports legislation like the MAPS Act and the Pharmaceutical Supply Chain Risk Assessment Act to improve transparency and risk mitigation in the pharmaceutical supply chain.

While reshoring supply chains is a goal, the AHA stresses that diversification of supply sources is equally as important. Strengthening domestic capacity will take time and must be paired with proactive mapping and assessment to enhance resilience.