The U.S., Canada and Mexico signed the U.S. Mexico Canada Agreement (USMCA, also referred to as NAFTA 2.0) this morning on the sidelines of the G-20 Summit in Argentina, though controversial Section 232 issues are still unresolved. To take effect, the agreement will need to be ratified by the legislatures in all three countries.
According to Inside U.S. Trade (paywalled) President Trump told reporters “I don’t expect to have very much of a problem” with Congressional implementation of the deal. However, some Democrats in Congress and some civil society groups oppose key provisions and plan to block ratification unless certain provisions are changed. Among the issues are intellectual property concerns.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, speaking at American University, vowed not to vote to implement the deal in its current form. She warned that “NAFTA 2.0 is also stuffed with handouts that will let big drug companies lock in the high prices they charge for many drugs. The new rules will make it harder to bring down drug prices for seniors and anyone else who needs access to life-saving medicine.”
Public Citizen predicts that “if the deal as-is does not have sufficient support to pass, it will be improved,” and urges people to write their representatives regarding a set of outstanding issues. Among these: “A 10-year special exclusivity period for biologic medicines would lock in bad policy here, undermining Congress’ plans to make medicine more affordable for Americans, while also raising prices in Canada and Mexico.” Celeste Drake of the AFL-CIO has criticized this element of USMCA as well.
