STATEMENT: AFPI Commends Senator Rubio for his Report Examining COVID-19’s Origins  

Washington, D.C. - Today, the America First Policy Institute (AFPI) released the following statements regarding Senator Rubio’s report on COVID-19’s origins. The report, “A Complex and Grave Situation,” provides a detailed chronology of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) grave mismanagement of the dangerous virus that killed millions. 

“‘A Complex and Grave Situation’ is a thorough indictment of the gross negligence that led to COVID’s escape from the Wuhan Institute of Virology,” Stephen Yates, AFPI Senior Fellow and Chair of the China Policy Initiative, said. “We praise Senator Rubio for highlighting the CCP’s shameless cover-up of the origins of the COVID virus. The Biden Administration must demand that the CCP come clean about its responsibility for the deaths of one million Americans and hold them accountable.” 

“This cover-up not only disrupted and dismantled American livelihoods but led to implementation of the wrong public health strategy affecting the health and well-being of all Americans. We are thankful for Senator Rubio’s dedication to setting the record straight,” Heidi Overton, MD, PhD, AFPI Chief Policy Officer and Director of the Center for a Healthy America, said. “As the World Health Assembly (WHA) convenes for its annual meeting next week, the Biden Administration must hold the organization accountable for setting back our response to COVID and doing the bidding of the CCP.” 

To learn more about AFPI’'s China Policy Initiative, click here.  

To learn more about AFPI’'s Center for a Healthy America, click here. 

To read AFPI’s 2021 research report on the origins of COVID-19 and the implications for biodefense and public health, click here.