Steube Urges Congressional Leaders to Withhold Federal Funding from China’s Wuhan Institute of Virology
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today, U.S. Representative Greg Steube (R-Fla.) joined U.S. Representative Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) and U.S. Senator Martha McSally (R-AZ) in sending a letter to Congressional leadership urging them to ensure that no stimulus funding is sent directly, or indirectly, to China’s controversial bio-agent laboratory the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV).
“With thousands of American businesses struggling as a result of this pandemic and questions raised about the true origin of the virus, we should not be using any taxpayer money to fund the Wuhan Institute of Virology,” Steube said. “Their blatant disinformation surrounding the virus and potential mishandling of biohazardous materials demands strong Congressional oversight to prevent a tragedy like this from ever happening again.”
This letter is in response to troubling media reports that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has been funding laboratory research at the WIV. The Wuhan Institute of Virology is authorized by the NIH to receive taxpayer funding for animal research. The U.S. Department of State warned the public of a “SARS-like pandemic” in 2018 due to the WIV’s improper handling of research.
According to the National Institute of Health’s website, the WIV has received $3.7 million in NIH grants to date.
The full text of the letter can be found here.
