Cybersecurity Policy Report, Genetic Data Protections Included in Defense Bill, (Dec 17, 2025)
Legislation designed to prevent foreign adversaries from stealing sensitive American genetic data and personal health information has cleared Congress as part of the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), Sen. Gary Peters (D., Mich.) announced today.
The fiscal year 2026 NDAA, which is on its way to President Trump after winning Senate approval (see separate story), contained a version of bicameral legislation, the Prohibiting Foreign Access to American Genetic Information Act, that was introduced in January 2024 (CPR, Jan. 26, 2024).
Sen. Peters, ranking member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, introduced the Senate version of the bill with Sen. Bill Hagerty (R., Tenn.).
The legislation would ban all biotechnology companies owned or controlled by a foreign adversary, such as the Chinese Communist Party, and whose business practices threaten national security, from receiving U.S. tax dollars through federal contracts, grants, and loans.
“When Americans undergo medical care, such as getting their blood drawn or other tests, they should be confident that their DNA will not end up in the wrong hands,” Sen. Peters said in a news release.
“Yet as more biotech companies owned or controlled by our adversaries gain access to Americans’ genomic data, more threats targeting this sensitive information emerge,” he added. “This provision is a critical step to ensuring that Americans’ personal health and genetic information cannot be used by foreign adversaries to undermine our national security.”
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