Biden stops funding for Wuhan Institute of Virology tied to COVID-19: Report
The Biden Administration Blocks Funding for Wuhan Institute of Virology
The Biden administration has taken decisive action to permanently block China’s Wuhan Institute of Virology from receiving funding from the U.S. government. This comes after a thorough review found the facility to be non-compliant with federal regulations.
According to a report from Bloomberg, the United States notified the institute of the decision to suspend funding on Monday. In a memo, plans were outlined to prevent the institute from receiving any potential future support.
Controversy Surrounding the Institute
The Wuhan Institute of Virology, located in the city where the COVID-19 outbreak began in China, had previously received funding from the National Institutes of Health for gain-of-function research on novel coronaviruses. Some speculate that it could be the origin of the COVID-19 pandemic, although no definitive determination has been made by any governing body.
In June, President Joe Biden authorized the release of a declassified report that highlighted the lack of consensus among U.S. intelligence agencies regarding the origin of COVID-19. The report acknowledged that both a natural and laboratory-associated origin remain plausible hypotheses.
However, the report did note that multiple scientists working at the Wuhan Institute of Virology fell ill in the fall of 2019 and that the institute frequently disregarded safety protocols. Researcher Ben Hu, who studied coronaviruses in programs funded by the U.S., was among the first scientists to experience symptoms.
Blocking Funding for Safety
The White House has not provided a comment on the matter, but a spokesperson from the Department of Health and Human Services stated that “this action will ensure the Wuhan Institute of Virology does not receive another dollar of federal funding.”
This is a developing story, and we will provide updates as more information becomes available.
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