Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway has joined a 20-state coalition in a letter sent to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, warning the federal administration about a significant national security risk concerning the pharmaceutical supply chain. The letter specifically highlights how Chinese-sourced businesses are exploiting existing oversight gaps, allowing potentially dangerous pharmaceutical ingredients to enter the United States. The coalition's concerns focus on ingredients used in popular compounded GLP-1 drugs, including semaglutide, tirzepatide, and retatrutide.
The heart of the problem, according to the letter, stems from the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) authorization of a “Green List” of suppliers in September 2025. This list, intended to streamline imports, has reportedly allowed Chinese suppliers to ship “unapproved, knock-off products to the United States without detention or inspection.” The letter describes the Green List as having become a proven “laundering channel,” despite efforts to verify the true source and chain of command of ingredients.
A specific instance detailed in the letter involves the Chinese company Harbin Jixianglong Biotech Co., Ltg (Harbin). Harbin, a company on the FDA's Green List, was found to have purchased knock-off semaglutide from a facility that was not registered with the FDA and was not on the Green List. An on-site inspection later revealed that Harbin repackaged and relabeled these non-Green List products under its own name, altering manufacturing and retest dates, before distributing them to the United States.
The coalition's letter points out that some Chinese businesses exploiting these gaps have direct ties to entities involved in manufacturing fentanyl. Attorney General Hanaway stated that “My office will not stand idly by while Chinese‑affiliated entities tied to fentanyl production” exploit oversight weaknesses. She added that Missouri would work for necessary safeguards to keep “knock‑off products” out of the state and ensure access to safe, legitimate, and life-saving medications that citizens rely on.
The letter to Secretary Rubio was led by Alabama's Attorney General. In addition to Missouri, attorneys general from Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, and West Virginia also signed on. The unified effort seeks to draw federal attention to the perceived vulnerabilities and advocate for stronger oversight of pharmaceutical imports from China.
