Trump to sign order in Ohio requiring government to buy US-made essential medicines

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President Trump will announce a Buy American executive order requiring the government to purchase essential drugs and medical supplies from domestic manufacturers instead of overseas.

The order, which Trump will sign on Thursday at Whirlpool Corporation’s manufacturing plant in Clyde, Ohio, instructs government agencies, including the departments of Veterans Affairs, Health and Human Services, and Defense, to procure certain drugs and medical products from U.S. manufacturers.

White House Office of Trade and Manufacturing Director Peter Navarro said the effort to “catalyze” advanced manufacturing was a “top priority” for the president. The trip also marks Trump’s latest to a battleground state less than three months from Election Day.

In Ohio, Trump’s likely Democratic opponent Joe Biden leads the president by 2.3 percentage points in an average of polls. In 2016, Trump won Ohio by 8 points. But in 2016, at this point in the race, Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton led Trump in a majority of polls.

The president campaigned on the promise to return manufacturing jobs to the United States, and Trump is expected to highlight efforts by his administration to boost jobs and return industry to the country.

Last week, Trump announced a deal with Eastman Kodak to manufacture generic pharmaceuticals.

Navarro, who called Thursday’s order “pure Trump” in a call with reporters Thursday, said that a “base level” of demand from the U.S. government was needed for such domestic manufacturing initiatives to succeed.

“Buy American is one of the oldest rules we have in the American government,” Navarro said. “It allows us, for example, with iron and steel and other manufactured goods purchased by the government, to maintain a certain level of manufacturing and defense industrial base.”

He added, “It’s not an appropriations bill.”

The order directs the Food and Drug Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency to speed the review process for domestic manufacturers of pharmaceutical ingredients and essential medicines.

It also targets the trafficking of counterfeit medicine from third-party online sellers.

Navarro said that without these interventions, “We’re going to continue to see our supply chains go offshore because of these pollution havens, tax havens, and sweatshops.”

“You see a country like Ireland punching very, very high above its weight, simply because of its tax advantages,” said Navarro. “You see China and India, Russia, Brazil, Turkey, others, dominating other parts of the chain.”

Trump is also scheduled to attend a fundraiser in Ohio today.

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