House Panel Issues Final Report Blaming China and Lab Leak for COVID-19
A Republican-led House committee investigating the origins and effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in the US has issued its final report, offering a sweeping critique of the global response and suggesting a lab leak in Wuhan, China as the most probable origin of the virus.
The 520-page report, concluding a two-year effort, contends that the coronavirus most likely emerged from the Wuhan Institute of Virology, pointing to the virus’s biological characteristics and past illnesses among researchers at the facility.
While most US intelligence agencies maintain that the virus was not genetically engineered, the exact origin of the pandemic remains uncertain. A US intelligence analysis released last year acknowledged the possibility of both a lab leak and a natural origin but concluded that the community remained divided on the issue.
The committee report asserts that if evidence supporting a natural origin existed, it would have surfaced by now.
Scientists continue to search for the ancestral virus responsible. Finding that animal is like finding a needle in a haystack. The search in this instance takes on added difficulty considering it took researchers over a decade to identify the origin of the first SARS outbreak, and the origins of Ebola remain unclear.
In contrast, researchers have accumulated years worth of evidence suggesting a natural origin for the pandemic, with the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuhan as the likely epicenter.
The report also criticizes the World Health Organization, arguing that its pursuit of political satisfaction over factual transparency significantly hindered the investigation into the virus’s origins.
"The lack of data disclosure is simply inexcusable," Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO’s COVID-19 technical lead, lamented in an editorial last year, "[TH]e longer it takes to understand the origins of the pandemic, the harder it becomes to answer the question, and the more unsafe the world becomes."
Adding to its criticisms, the committee expresses deep concern about the future of the proposed Pandemic Treaty, highlighting a lack of transparency in the drafting process and the draft’s perceived inability to address weaknesses exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The report takes aim at popular COVID-19 mitigation strategies, arguing that social distancing and mask mandates weren’t grounded in reliable scientific evidence.
"[P]rolonged lockdowns caused immeasurable harm to not only the American economy, but also to the mental and physical health of Americans, with a particularly negative effect on younger citizens," the report states.
Experts have countered that these recommendations were sometimes based on knowledge derived from studying other respiratory viruses, given the limited understanding of the novel coronavirus at the time. They emphasize that scientific understanding evolves, and guidelines often need adaptation as new discoveries emerge.
Despite its criticisms, the report praises the Trump administration’s early imposition of travel restrictions, arguing they saved lives and were unjustly labeled as xenophobic.
Operation Warp Speed, the Trump administration’s initiative to rapidly develop a COVID-19 vaccine, also receives high praise. The report labels it an "incredible feat of science" responsible for saving millions of lives.
However, the report criticizes public health officials for exaggerating the vaccines’ ability to prevent infection or transmission. The committee believes this misrepresentation contributed to a decline in public trust in both COVID-19 vaccines and vaccines in general.
Additionally, the report accuses public health officials of suppressing dissenting opinions and ignoring the potential benefits of natural immunity.
“[W]hen it comes to natural immunity after infection, it seems durable and robust,” acknowledges Dr. Marty Makary, President-elect Trump’s nominee for director of the FDA, in a 2021 opinion piece, but he continues by highlighting the need for further research.
Another point of contention involves the spread of misinformation, with public health officials allegedly misrepresenting the lab leak theory and advocating for the use of off-label medications such as ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine, which the FDA has deemed ineffective against COVID-19.
The report also identifies weaknesses in the US domestic supply chain and the Strategic National Stockpile, recommending states establish their own stockpiles of emergency medical supplies for faster, more localized responses.
The panel, chaired by Ohio Republican Rep. Brad Wenstrup, will hold a markup session before formally submitting the report to the Congressional Record. While hearings often displayed partisan divides, Wenstrup insists that former President Trump’s influence was not a factor when crafting the panel’s investigation.
"A future pandemic requires a whole of America response managed by those without personal benefit or bias," asserted Wenstrup in a letter to Congress Monday, “We can always do better, and for the sake of future generations of Americans, we must. It can be done!"
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