NIH gave nonprofit group money for risky coronavirus research without proper oversight, watchdog finds
The investigation did not assess the scientific results of EcoHealth Alliance's experiments or evaluate if those results posed a risk or qualified as– an area of study in which viruses are manipulated to become more contagious, or even deadly, so that scientists can prepare vaccines and prevent the next pandemic. Critics say such research risks accidentally causing a pandemic, and NIH has guidelines meant to apply strict oversight to any federally-funded gain-of-function projects.
The report also rebuked EcoHealth for failing to ensure that its subawards were compliant with federal regulations, including monitoring and reporting requirements for subrecipients like the Wuhan Institute of Virology. Additionally, EcoHealth improperly spent $89,171 of its grant money, according to the inspector general. The groupthat those costs amounted to roughly 1% of its NIH grant awards and said the audit process revealed that EcoHealth had also been underpaid by the NIH by $126,391.
The inspector general's report drew a swift response from Republican lawmakers, who reintroduced legislation Wednesday to ban EcoHealth Alliance from receiving federal funding.
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