Protecting Our Essential Medicines Act

This bill requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to create and maintain confidential lists of critical drugs imported into the U.S. that are vital for public health, including those whose shortages could harm patients with chronic conditions. The lists include details about manufacturing facilities but cannot be publicly disclosed, though the top 3 countries importing these drugs must be publicly reported without revealing specific drug identities. The bill mandates an interagency task force (including FDA, CDC, Defense, and intelligence agencies) to determine which drugs qualify and requires annual updates to the lists within 180 days of enactment. It also imposes strict cybersecurity rules for handling the confidential data and limits sharing only to national security agencies for supply chain risk assessments.