US Department of Health and Human Services suspends government funding to EcoHealth Alliance

By Annette Gartland on May 16, 2024

This article has been updated with information about the action taken by the HHS against Peter Daszak personally.

The EcoHealth Alliance has been suspended from participating in United States federal government procurement and non-procurement programmes and the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is beginning formal funding debarment proceedings against the organisation.

The HHS’s decision comes just two weeks after the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic released an extensive report about the EHA and recommended funding debarment.

The select subcommittee’s chairman, Brad Wenstrup, said the EHA would now face an immediate, government-wide suspension of taxpayer funds, including a hold on all active grants.

Wenstrup said the select subcommittee’s report revealed serious, systemic weaknesses in the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) grant procedures “and examined how these failures enabled EHA president Peter Daszak to fund dangerous gain-of-function research in Wuhan, China, without sufficient oversight”.

The HHS’s suspension and debarment official and deputy assistant secretary for acquisitions, Henrietta Katrina Brisbon, wrote to Daszak, stating: “This is to provide notification that, on behalf of the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), I have suspended and proposed for debarment EcoHealth Alliance, Inc. (EHA) from participating in United States Federal Government procurement and nonprocurement programs.”

Brisbon said the suspension and proposed debarment were effective as of May 14, 2024.

She noted that an Action Referral Memorandum (ARM), dated May 15, 2024, set forth the basis for the suspension and proposed debarment.

“The information in the ARM indicates that EHA lacks the present responsibility to participate in federal procurement and nonprocurement programs,” she wrote.

Brisbon refers in the ARM to the EHA’s work with the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV).

She states: “I have determined that the immediate suspension of EHA is necessary to protect the public interest and due to a cause of so serious or compelling a nature that it affects EHA’s present responsibility, including EHA’s failure to adequately monitor the virus growth in WIV’s experiments; EHA’s failure to notify the NIH that the WIV viruses appeared to grow beyond permissible thresholds under the grant’s terms and conditions; EHA’s failure to provide the requested information to support WIV’s research reported in the grant RPPRs [Research Performance Progress Reports] and I-RPPRs [Interim-Research Performance Progress Reports]; and EHA’s failure to comply with the timely submission of its Year 5 IRPPR.”

Brisbon adds: “As noted in the ARM, this suspension is a temporary action. Suspension is used where immediate action is necessary to protect the integrity of federal procurement and nonprocurement activities.”

She said the suspension was effective until the conclusion of debarment proceedings.

“It is important to note that suspension and debarment actions are not punitive,” Brisbon added. “Accordingly, I will consider any information EHA provides in response to this Notice. Debarment is generally for a period not to exceed three years; however, regardless of whether EHA contests this action or responds to this Notice, I may impose debarment for a longer period or shorter period as the circumstances warrant. The length of debarment, if ultimately imposed, will be based on the seriousness of the cause for debarment …”

Wenstrup said today (Wednesday): “EcoHealth Alliance and Dr Peter Daszak should never again receive a single penny from the U.S. taxpayer.

“EcoHealth facilitated gain-of-function research in Wuhan, China, without proper oversight, willingly violated multiple requirements of its multimillion-dollar National Institutes of Health grant, and apparently made false statements to the NIH.

“These actions are wholly abhorrent, indefensible, and must be addressed with swift action.”

Wenstrup said the select subcommittee’s investigation into the EHA and the origins of Covid-19 was far from over.

“Dr Daszak and his team are still required to produce all outstanding documents and answer the select subcommittee’s questions, specifically related to Dr Daszak’s potential dishonesty under oath,” Wenstrup said.

“We will hold EcoHealth accountable for any waste, fraud, and abuse and are committed to uncovering any illegal activity, including lying to Congress, NIH, or the Inspector General.”

Ranking member of the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic Raul Ruiz said he welcomed the Administration’s announcement that it had suspended, and initiated the termination of, federal funding for the EHA.

“Every recipient of federal taxpayer funding has an obligation to meet the utmost standards of transparency and accountability to the American public,” Ruiz said.

“EcoHealth Alliance’s failure to do so is a departure from the longstanding legacy of good faith partnerships between NIH and federal grantees to advance science and the public interest, which remains essential for the continued work of preventing and preparing for future threats to our nation’s public health.”

Chairwoman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee Cathy McMorris Rodgers; chairman of the Subcommittee on Health Brett Guthrie; and chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Morgan Griffith issued a joint statement after the HHS announced the suspension and proposed debarment of the EHA from receiving federal funding.

“This announcement is welcomed, but long overdue,” they said. “Not only did EcoHealth Alliance intend to mislead the federal government through research proposals, but EcoHealth’s President Peter Daszak also lied to Congress.

“This deception and obstruction alone are enough to merit debarment and come in addition to EcoHealth’s mishandling of taxpayer-funded grant money and failure to conduct meaningful oversight of the now-debarred Wuhan Institute of Virology.”

McMorris Rodgers, Guthrie, and Griffith praised the work of the investigative research group ‘U.S. Right to Know’.

“We commend the U.S. Right to Know for uncovering the notes from the DEFUSE Project grant application that revealed Daszak’s deception, as well as members from both sides of the aisle who worked to hold him accountable,” they said.

UPDATE

The HHS’s Henrietta Katrina Brisbon, has sent a follow-up email to Peter Daszak about actions it has taken against him personally: a funding suspension and the start of debarment proceedings.

She wrote: “This is to provide notification that, on behalf of the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), I have suspended you and proposed you for debarment, related to your respective roles as the President of EcoHealth Alliance, Inc. (EHA) and as Program Director (PD)/Principal Investigator (PI) on the National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID) Grant Number R01AI110964, from participating in United States Federal Government procurement and nonprocurement programs.”

Brisbon said the suspension and proposed debarment were effective as of May 21, 2024.

A new Action Referral Memorandum specifically referring to Daszak’s funding suspension and proposed debarment was issued on May 21.

Brad Wenstrup said Daszak’s personal debarment would ensure that he never again received a single cent from US taxpayers “nor has the opportunity to start a new, untrustworthy organisation”.

He added: “Dr Daszak’s impending debarment does not shield him from accountability to the American people. It appears that Dr Daszak may have lied under oath about his relationship with the Wuhan Institute of Virology and his compliance with NIH grant procedures.

“The select subcommittee intends to hold Dr Daszak accountable for any dishonesty and reminds him that this debarment decision does not preclude him from producing all outstanding documents and answering all the questions of this congressional body.”

Peter Daszak gave public testimony before the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic on May 1.

Apologies to Changing Times readers; due to a combination of unforeseen circumstances, I have not yet been able to write a report about Daszak’s testimony.