Peter Daszak, and members of the World Health Organization (WHO) team investigating the origins of COVID-19, arrive at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China on Feb. 3, 2021. (Hector Retamal/AFP via Getty Images)
"EcoHealth Alliance and [EcoHealth President] Dr. Peter Daszak should never again receive a single penny from the U.S. taxpayer," committee Chairman Brad Wenstrup, R-Ohio, said in a statement Wednesday. "EcoHealth facilitated gain-of-function research in Wuhan, China, without proper oversight, willingly violated multiple requirements of its multimillion-dollar National Institutes of Health Grant and apparently made false statements to the NIH."
Wenstrup added that those actions are "wholly abhorrent, indefensible, and must be addressed with swift action."
"EcoHealth’s immediate funding suspension and future debarment is not only a victory for the U.S. taxpayer, but also for American national security and the safety of citizens worldwide," Wenstrup said.
Peter Daszak, a member of the WHO team investigating the origins of COVID-19, in Wuhan, China, on Feb. 3, 2021. (Reuters/Thomas Peter/File Photo)
EcoHealth Alliance also received more than $200,000 that was redirected to Wuhan University and went toward disease surveillance research activities, including collection of biological samples from people in China with high levels of exposure to bats for Wuhan Institute of Virology to conduct further screening.
Former U.S. government officials, like former NIH Director Francis Collins, said the U.S. taxpayer money was not approved to conduct gain-of-function research, which is research that involves modifying a virus to make it more infectious among humans.
ECOHEALTH ALLIANCE PRESIDENT TESTIFIES ON COVID ORIGINS, WUHAN LAB TAXPAYER-FUNDED RESEARCH
The U.S. Energy Department and the FBI have determined that COVID-19 likely emerged from a lab leak in China.
Rep. Brad Wenstrup leaves a meeting of the House Republican Conference at the Capitol Hill Club on July 26, 2023. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
Meanwhile, Wenstrup says his committee’s investigation into the origins of COVID-19 and EcoHealth "is far from over."
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"Dr. Daszak and his team are still required to produce all outstanding documents and answer the Select Subcommittee’s questions, specifically related to Dr. Daszak’s potential dishonesty under oath," he said. "We will hold EcoHealth accountable for any waste, fraud, and abuse and are committed to uncovering any illegal activity, including lying to Congress, NIH, or the Inspector General."
Brooke Singman is a political correspondent and reporter for Fox News Digital, Fox News Channel and FOX Business.
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