VIEWPOINT | Foreign price controls threaten U.S. biotech edge

Guest column by Joni Ekstrum, the executive director of the South Dakota Biotech Association

Sen. John Thune has long championed American innovation, free enterprise and national security. As global competition intensifies and the need for economic resilience grows more urgent, we must protect the industries that have powered America’s leadership in medical breakthroughs and biopharmaceutical innovation.

Unfortunately, policies being discussed in Washington, like Most Favored Nation (MFN), undermine that foundation and threaten the future of patients, researchers and manufacturers in South Dakota and across America.

Nowhere is this threat more serious than in the context of U.S. competition with China. While American policymakers debate whether to adopt foreign price controls, China is investing billions in its biotech sector, accelerating clinical trials and stealing U.S. intellectual property at a staggering rate. In 2023, China surpassed the U.S. in the number of new clinical trials launched. It is ...

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