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WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Brett Guthrie (KY-02), top Republican on the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, and Congressman Eliot Engel (NY-16), senior member of the Health Subcommittee, released the following statements after the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Senate amended Safeguarding Therapeutics Act (H.R. 5663). This bill is headed to President Donald Trump’s desk.

“Sadly, even during the COVID-19 public health emergency, bad actors are trying to bring counterfeit medical devices into our country, including fake COVID-19 testing kits,” said Guthrie. “I’ve seen the dangers these counterfeit devices pose to public health firsthand when I visited the International Mail Facility at John F. Kennedy Airport. I introduced this bill with Congressman Engel to protect patients by giving the FDA the authority needed to destroy fake medical devices coming into our country. I want to thank my House and Senate colleagues for supporting this bipartisan bill, and I look forward to President Trump signing this important public health bill into law.”

"The COVID-19 vaccine is top of mind for millions of Americans right now, but ensuring the vaccine is delivered safely must include steps to protect the public from counterfeit medical devices and medications,” said Engel. “The Safeguarding Therapeutics Act that Congressman Guthrie and I authored will give the FDA the tools needed to seize and destroy counterfeit medical products, which pose significant threats to people's health. Its passage this week, just days before the first COVID-19 vaccines are administered in the U.S., is an important step forward in the battle against this awful pandemic, and I am hopeful that the President will move swiftly to sign this bill before the end of the year."

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