Patients Ask Treasury to Draw the Line at Threats, Not Treatments

WASHINGTON, D.C. (October 23, 2026) — On October 22, the U.S. Department of the Treasury proposed rules to implement the Comprehensive Outbound Investment National Security (COINS) Act. For the first time, the proposal adds biotechnology to the list of technologies where certain U.S. investments in China and other countries of concern would be prohibited. Treasury is accepting public comments through December 7, 2026. Terry Wilcox, Chief Patient Advocate of Patients Rising, issued the following statement:

“Patients have as much at stake in national security as anyone, and we share Treasury’s goal of keeping our adversaries from turning American investment into military and surveillance capabilities. But as proposed, this rule puts vaccines, cell and gene therapies, antibodies, and even ordinary small-molecule medicines in the same prohibited category as dangerous biological agents. Treasury itself has recognized that restrictions in this sector could create public health risks, and it has asked how the rule should be narrowed. We intend to answer that question on behalf of patients: draw the line around capabilities that threaten our country, not around the treatments families are waiting for.”

The proposed definition of prohibited biotechnology is broad. It covers the use of biological systems to produce export-controlled agents and toxins, and in the same provision it covers pharmaceutical compounds, which Treasury describes as including small molecules, vaccines, blood products, cell and gene therapies, and monoclonal antibodies. The rule would apply to equity investments, certain convertible loans, joint ventures, new facilities, and some fund investments by U.S. persons. Licensing agreements are not listed as a covered transaction type, but cross-border partnerships that include an equity stake or a joint venture would fall within the rule.

Treasury has invited exactly the conversation patients need. The proposal acknowledges that restrictions in this sector could work against national security if they lead to significant public health risks, and it asks commenters whether “pharmaceutical compounds” should be scoped more narrowly to advanced or frontier technologies. Patients Rising will urge Treasury to do just that, so the rule focuses on capabilities with genuine military, surveillance, or weapons potential rather than on medicines in development for patients.

We will also ask Treasury to make the rule workable and transparent. The proposal includes a national interest exemption and a process for requesting non-binding feedback, and both should come with clear timelines so that promising therapies are not stalled by uncertainty. Treasury should also report, in aggregate, how many transactions the program blocks or exempts and in which therapeutic areas, so that patients and policymakers can see what the rule is actually doing.

Patients Rising will submit formal comments before the December 7 deadline.

Sources

• Treasury press release on the proposed rule (October 22, 2026)
• Treasury Outbound Investment Security Program page, with links to the proposed rule and fact sheet
• Notice of Proposed Rulemaking: COINS Act implementation (PDF)
• Treasury Fact Sheet and FAQs on the proposed rule (PDF)