Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
When Did Covid Really Hit The US? GOP Lawmakers Ask CDC To Study
CBS News: Republicans On House Panel Ask CDC To Determine If COVID-19 Was In U.S. Earlier Than Reported
Republicans on the House Committee on Energy and Commerce are asking the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to investigate early possible COVID-19 cases and blood work in the U.S. to determine whether the virus was present in the country earlier than current estimates. Specifically, committee Republicans sent a letter to CDC Director Rochelle Walensky asking the CDC to use the most accurate tests available to test more blood samples from 2019 and investigate early unexplained deaths to determine if the virus was in the country earlier than December 13, 2019. The request is part of committee Republicans' investigation into the origins of COVID-19. (Watson and Gazis, 6/8)
Bloomberg: U.S. Gets Crucial EU Support For New Study Into Covid’s Origins
The U.S. and the European Union are set to back a renewed push into investigating the origins of Covid-19 after conflicting assessments about where the outbreak started, according to a document seen by Bloomberg News. In a draft statement the countries hope to adopt at a summit later this month, they “call for progress on a transparent, evidence-based, and expert-led WHO-convened phase 2 study on the origins of COVID-19, that is free from interference.” (Nardelli and Wingrove, 6/8)
AP: EXPLAINER: The US Investigation Into COVID-19 Origins
Once dismissed by most public health experts and government officials, the hypothesis that COVID-19 leaked accidentally from a Chinese lab is now receiving scrutiny under a new U.S. investigation. Experts say the 90-day review ordered on May 26 by President Joe Biden will push American intelligence agencies to collect more information and review what they already have. Former State Department officials under President Donald Trump have publicly pushed for further investigation into virus origins, as have scientists and the World Health Organization. (Larson and Merchant, 6/9)
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The Wall Street Journal: Over 47,000 Wild Animals Sold In Wuhan Markets Before Covid Outbreak, Study Shows
More than 47,000 wild animals were sold in the Chinese city of Wuhan in the two and a half years before the first confirmed Covid-19 cluster was found there, a new study showed, providing critical new evidence that the coronavirus could have spread naturally from animals to humans. The study, published in the open-access journal Scientific Reports, revealed that the wild animals, including 31 protected species, were often butchered on site in markets, and stored in the kinds of cramped, unhygienic conditions that can allow viruses to hop species. (Page, Hinshaw and McKay, 6/8)
