The GOP introduces a bill that would sanction Beijing for hindering COVID-19 origins investigations

Photo Credit: Photo by Allegra Boverman

Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) has filed legislation that would empower fines and other limitations against Chinese officials and scientists unless Beijing agrees to a "serious and comprehensive worldwide probe" into the origins of COVID-19 at suspected Chinese laboratories.

"The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has obstructed all efforts to identify the actual roots of COVID-19 for the past two years," Rubio stated in a statement released by his office on Jan. 11. "We know the virus originated in China, but the CCP's efforts to hide the fact have resulted in many deaths and unnecessary suffering throughout the world."

The Coronavirus Origin Validation, Inquiry, and Resolution (COVID) Act of 2020 gives the Chinese government 90 days to open up its labs to the inquiry after it is passed.

According to the law, former and present workers of these laboratories should be able to interact with the experts, who will also require "full access" to viral cultures, databases, and specimens at these institutions.

12 Jan 2022