Pharma leaders risk industry collapse by over-relying on Chinese drug sourcing, says analyst

Olivia Kosloff, a senior fellow at the American Economic Liberties Project and co-chair of a Council on Foreign Relations working group, argues that U.S. pharma and biotech executives are jeopardizing their own sector by chasing short-term gains.

She points to a rapid rise in spending on Chinese licensed drug assets, which grew from about $9 billion in 2020 to more than $137 billion by 2025, with the first two months of 2026 alone accounting for roughly $50 billion in deals.

A December 2025 report from the National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology noted that China’s biopharmaceutical industry moved from near irrelevance to a dominant position within three years.

The author also highlights that an estimated 60 percent of generic medicines in the United States contain active ingredients sourced from China, underscoring a deepening reliance that could undermine domestic capabilities.