U.S. House Committee Investigating Drugmakers Involved in China Drug Trials: Report

The U.S. House Select Committee on China has launched a national security investigation into five major pharmaceutical companies—Merck, AbbVie, Eli Lilly, Pfizer, and Bristol Myers Squibb—regarding their clinical trial operations in China. Lawmakers are requesting detailed documentation by July 17 concerning data protection, intellectual property risks, and the use of trial sites in the Xinjiang region and military-affiliated hospitals. This probe highlights growing congressional scrutiny over the pharmaceutical industry's reliance on Chinese infrastructure and the potential for sensitive biotechnological know-how to be transferred to the Chinese military.

Led by Representative John Moolenaar, the House Select Committee on China sent letters to the CEOs of Merck, AbbVie, Eli Lilly, Pfizer, and Bristol Myers Squibb seeking clarity on their Chinese clinical footprints. While the committee explicitly stated there is currently no evidence of illegal activity, it raised concerns that conducting research at People's Republic of China (PRC) military hospitals exposes American biotechnology to potential intellectual property theft. The companies are required to provide information on their due diligence processes and monitoring of compliance at Xinjiang-based sites and People's Liberation Army (PLA) affiliated medical centers.

The investigation highlights extensive historical involvement in China, with Merck sponsoring or collaborating on 224 clinical studies since 2005, including 40 at military-linked centers and 31 in Xinjiang. AbbVie has reportedly been involved in over 100 studies since 2007, with 16 at military centers and 17 in Xinjiang. Lawmakers flagged the Xinjiang region due to ongoing human rights concerns and alleged deficiencies in the informed consent process for trial participants. The committee invoked the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act as a benchmark for ensuring that pharmaceutical operations do not inadvertently support unethical practices or forced labor.

This inquiry reflects broader geopolitical tensions as China’s role in drug development has surged; its share of global early drug development programs rose from 8% in 2015 to over 32% in 2024, while the U.S. share declined to 37%. In 2025 alone, global drugmakers signed a record $138 billion in deals to license experimental Chinese medicines, signaling a deep integration that U.S. officials view as a national security risk. The probe follows the enactment of the Biosecure Act, which restricts federal dealings with certain foreign biotech firms, indicating that Congress is now expanding its oversight to include the domestic pharmaceutical giants already operating within the Chinese market.