GOP Senator Introduces the 'Fauci Act' To Hold NIH Officials Accountable For Misleading the American People
Iowa Republican Sen. Joni Ernst introduced a bill this week to force more accountability for the National Institutes of Health and its National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases — both on gain-of-function research in Chinese labs and honesty from its employees.
The lawmaker's legislation, called the Fairness and Accountability in Underwriting Chinese Institutions Act, or the FAUCI Act, would put a complete ban on U.S. funding for any gain-of-function research, as a statement from Ernst's office said. The bill would also require what Ernst's office called "a full accounting of U.S. involvement in 'gain-of-function' research, particularly in China."
And, perhaps most notably to presidential adviser and NIAID Director Dr. Anthony Fauci and retiring NIH Director Francis Collins, the bill would make sure that any NIH employee or grantee who "intentionally misleads Congress, or the Inspector General, will be ineligible for current or future federal grants and employment."
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