Former White House chief medical adviser Anthony Fauci appeared in a seven-hour closed-door meeting Monday to face questions about the COVID-19 pandemic and offer his expertise on preparing for possible future outbreaks. provided.
The former government official agreed to two days of recorded interviews in quick succession last year before the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic. The first meeting on Monday lasted about an hour.
Fauci took several breaks during the meeting and did not take questions from reporters. Lawmakers in the room said the atmosphere at the meeting was “respectful” and “supportive.”
“He was very cooperative there. We asked a lot of questions. Dr. Fauci answers in the best way he can. There may be over 100 answers at this point of 'I don't remember' or 'I don't remember.' ” Committee Chairman Rep. Brad Wenstrup (R-Ohio) told reporters. “That probably means we have to find someone we remember.”
Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) said the conference was an “education day.”
“There was a lot of other information exchange today. So we were talking about what the role of the federal government is and what the role of state and local governments is. Things are being tested and they were meant to make testing available to everyone,” Dingell said.
Fauci's press conference was attended by two of his own lawyers and two government lawyers.
Wenstrup's office said ahead of the meeting that the speaker would ask questions about the origins of COVID-19, alleged violations of federal records, conflicts of interest and guidelines he believes conflict with his own during the pandemic.
One issue that particularly stood out to Wenstrup was Fauci's definition of gain-of-function research.
Republicans are questioning whether U.S.-funded gain-of-function research in Wuhan, China, may have led to the lab breach that led to the coronavirus pandemic, and how much Fauci knew about the research. He has repeatedly questioned the extent of his involvement. At Monday's meeting, Fauci said he was open-minded about the origins of the virus, according to attendees.
“The most interesting thing is the new definition we heard, which Dr. Fauci calls the operational definition of gain of function,” Wenstrup said. “And I don't know if all the scientists who do this kind of virus research understand his operational definition, the definition of gain of function.”
But Democratic lawmakers who attended the meeting said Fauci was able to “clarify” the definition of gain of capabilities.
“Many of our Republican colleagues fail to recognize a valid regulatory definition. [of] Capability acquisitions, enacted in 2017, were still in place when the coronavirus pandemic arrived. And the concerns about the EcoHealth Alliance, Dr. Fauci was able to articulate that today,” said Rep. Kathy Castor (D-Florida).
gain-of-function research, as defined by. Ministry of Health and Human Servicesis “research that helps improve the ability of pathogens to cause disease and defines the fundamental nature of human-pathogen interactions; thereby enabling assessment of the pandemic potential of emerging infectious diseases; A development that will inform public health and preparedness efforts and enable medical countermeasures to be advanced. “
The grant awarded by the National Institutes of Health went toward coronavirus research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV). EcoHealth Alliance, a non-governmental organization that provided supplemental funding to WIV, has repeatedly stated that the funds were not used for gain-of-function research. Federal funding for WIV was stopped in 2020.
Wenstrup said Monday that his hours-long meeting with Fauci revealed “some serious flaws in our system” when it comes to awarding grants.
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