NIH alerted to ‘biosafety concerns’ at Wuhan lab linked to COVID-19 origin.

The Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) has been at the center of controversy since the outbreak of COVID-19. Now, a newly released letter from the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) has warned of potential bio-safety concerns at the Chinese laboratory complex.

NIH Suspends Funding for WIV Subaward

The letter, sent on May 20, 2020, to the University of California, Irvine, which had been funneling some of the taxpayer funding it was receiving to the WIV, stated that the NIH “has been made aware of reports that WIV has been conducting research at its facilities in China that pose serious bio-safety concerns and, as a result, health and welfare threats to the public, both in China and other countries, including the United States,” according to Dr. Michael Lauer, an NIH official.

The NIH suspended funding for the WIV subaward due to the concerns, effective immediately. That meant the university must not allow further research under the project to be conducted by WIV and must provide no further funding.

Research Paper Cites Award and Thanks University and NIH

The research in question was aimed at developing herpes virus neural circuit tracers. It received $4.3 million, of which 216,000 was sent to the WIV. At least one research paper published by Chinese scientists cited the award and thanked the university and the NIH.

The letter provides additional evidence that NIH officials were concerned about the U.S.-funded experiments at the Wuhan lab. However, some NIH officials worked to promote the COVID-19 natural origin theory and lobbied for continued funding for the WIV.

Rep. Brad Wenstrup Wants Answers

Rep. Brad Wenstrup (R-Ohio), chairman of the panel, wrote to Dr. Lawrence Tabak, NIH’s acting director, asking for answers on the newly revealed documents.

“The May 2020 letter is another acknowledgement by the NIH that risky research and lackluster bio-safety were determining factors in revoking U.S. taxpayer funding from the Wuhan lab,” the panel said in a statement. “The NIH failed to share these concerns with the American people.”

What Happened Next?

The University of California, Irvine informed WIV officials six days after receiving the letter that the WIV “must stop work effective immediately on any and all activities supported by the subaward,” according to another letter obtained by the House panel.

After receiving the letter, the university “promptly complied with the directive and communicated to WIV that the research should not move forward,” a university spokesperson told The Epoch Times in an email. The planned work was later done at the university.

Conclusion

The newly released letter from the NIH highlights the potential bio-safety concerns at the Wuhan lab. Rep. Brad Wenstrup is seeking answers, and the American people deserve to know the truth about what happened.