Following the controversy over the provision of "Made in China" masks by the US Congress, some members of Congress have challenged the Biden administration on the "Made in China" rapid test kit for the new crown virus antigen.
According to the Fox News Network reported on the 25th, Florida Republican Senator Rick Scott said in a statement on the same day that it is "unacceptable" for the Biden administration to spend the money of American taxpayers on China's kits. He smeared China with allegations such as so-called "genocide," claiming the money should be used to support U.S. manufacturers and jobs.
Rick Scott infographic
In response to the surge in cases caused by the Omiljun strain variant, the White House and the U.S. Postal Service recently launched a new measure to mail 500 million rapid test kits for covid-19 antigens to families across the United States. According to the U.S. Department of Defense website, one of the main suppliers of participating home rapid test kits is a company called iHealthLabs, although it is headquartered in California, but the self-test kit is printed with the English text "Made in China". Reuters said iHealth was a subsidiary of the Chinese company Jiuan Medical. The company signed a $1.275 billion contract with the U.S. government on Jan. 13.
This is not the first time that U.S. lawmakers have criticized the Biden administration for "Made in China" epidemic prevention supplies. Previously, the Office of the Attending Physician of the U.S. Congress provided members of Congress and their staff with KN95 masks printed with the words "Made in China" on them. Fox News also specifically mentioned in the report that in addition to the "Made in China" printed in bold letters on the side of the mask, there is also a piece of paper with the red star seal printed on the bag. To that end, more than 120 House Republicans sent a joint letter to House Speaker Pelosi expressing their "disbelief and anger," saying that there was actually "an American-made alternative" and that taxpayer money was being used to buy masks made in China.
U.S. Republican Rep. Brian Steele from Wisconsin posted a photo on his Twitter on the 20th local time. The subject of the photo is a KN95 mask with the words "Made in China (MADEINCHINA)" printed on the mask
Earlier this month, Scott wrote to the Biden administration urging it to prioritize U.S.-made COVID-19 test kits and strictly ban the purchase of kits made in China. The Biden administration responded on Tuesday that not all 500 million kits were "made in China" and that they procured kits made "in the rest of the world" because there were not enough kits made in the United States to meet demand.
Biden Infographic
A Biden administration official said the purpose was to ensure that as many household test kits as possible could be made available to the American people without affecting the channels through which states, pharmacies, and others procure themselves. The official also added that all self-test kits, regardless of where they come from, go through the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) strict emergency use authorization process and have the highest quality assurance. The iHealth test kit also has the words "FDA Emergency Use Authorization" printed on the packaging.
Source: World Wide Web