Biden implements sharp tariff hikes on Chinese medical imports

WASHINGTON—Expect some steep price hikes on medical equipment from China.

Following a four-year statutory review, President Biden is raising tariffs on Chinese imports on a wide range of markets to "protect American workers and American companies from China's unfair trade practices."

In addition to medical products, the U.S. will hike tariff rates on Chinese imports of steel and aluminum; semiconductors; electric vehicles; batteries, battery components and parts, and critical minerals; solar cells; and ship-to-shore cranes, according to a White House press release.

"In response to China's unfair trade practices and to counteract the resulting harms, today, President Biden is directing his Trade Representative (Katherine Tai) to increase tariffs under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 on $18 billion of imports from China to protect American workers and businesses," the White House said.

Medical products facing tariff hikes include syringes and needles, increasing from 0 percent to 50 percent in 2024; personal protective equipment (PPE), including certain respirators and face masks, increasing from 0-7.5 percent to 25 percent in 2024; and rubber medical and surgical gloves, increasing from 7.5 percent to 25 percent in 2026.

"These tariff rate increases will help support and sustain a strong domestic industrial base for medical supplies that were essential to the COVID-19 pandemic response, and continue to be used daily in every hospital across the country to deliver essential care," the White House said in a statement, noting the federal government and private medical sector have made substantial investments in bolstering the U.S.'s domestic medical manufacturing industry.el

The American Medical Manufacturers Association celebrated this announcement.

"This signifies a pivotal moment in America's quest for self-reliance and true resilience, particularly in personal protective equipment (PPE) and critical medical products," the association said in a statement, calling Biden's move to increase tariffs "groundbreaking."

"The White House understands that domestic manufacturers face an onslaught of underpriced, subpar Chinese imports," Eric Axel, executive director of AMMA said. "By sidelining high-quality American manufacturers, cheap Chinese imports threaten the safety of our health care workers and patients."

AMMA, an alliance of domestic PPE manufacturers and partners, has championed policy reforms to support domestic PPE manufacturing.

"Our member companies can compete with manufacturers globally. All they ask is for a level playing field because they have no doubt that American ingenuity and quality will win out," Axel said.

"The White House's bold proclamation is significant for everyone who favors fortifying domestic PPE and medical product manufacturing," he added. "AMMA anticipates the measures announced by President Biden having a transformative impact, invigorating the domestic manufacturing base and safeguarding our nation's health and security."

Biden also is directing Ambassador Tai to establish an exclusion process for machinery used in domestic manufacturing and prioritize exclusions for "certain solar manufacturing equipment," according to the U.S. Trade Representative's office.

The USTR will issue a Federal Register notice next week detailing procedures for a public comment period "on the proposed modifications and information concerning an exclusion process for machinery used in domestic manufacturing."