Today, House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Mike Turner (OH-10) and Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic Chairman Brad Wenstrup (OH-02) issued the following statement after the Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a report confirming that taxpayer dollars to two federal agencies subsequently funded Chinese entities known to be doing coronavirus research.
“Today, the GAO confirmed that U.S. taxpayer dollars awarded from the National Institutes of Health and USAID were ultimately used for research by entities in China, including the Wuhan Institute of Virology, which was known to be doing coronavirus research. This revelation is very concerning due to the increased focus on the ‘lab leak’ theory, which suggests that the virus may have originated from the Wuhan laboratory rather than through natural means. We have long argued that the American people deserve the truth about COVID-19’s origin and continue to take concrete actions to declassify intelligence related to the pandemic,”said HPSCI Chairman Mike Turner and SSCP Chairman Brad Wenstrup.
Background:
As outlined by the GAO report and graphic below, U.S. taxpayer dollars directed to American universities and the non-profit EcoHealth Alliance were subsequently redirected to the Wuhan Institute of Virology as well as the Wuhan University and the Academy of Military Medical Sciences (AMMS), which is an arm of the People’s Liberation Army of the Chinese Communist Party.
On March 10, 2023, S.619, the COVID-19 Origin Act of 2023, unanimously passed the U.S. House of Representatives.
On March 20, 2023, President Biden signed the COVID-19 Origin Act of 2023 into law.
This full GAO report, which was requested by HPSCI Republicans in April 2022, is available here.
