The Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR), part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), today announced awards totaling $18.5 million to two U.S. companies to expand the nation’s manufacturing of key starting materials and active pharmaceutical ingredients needed to make essential medicines. The awards are the first through ASPR’s BioMaP-Consortium, a public-private partnership established in January 2024.