The Trump administration has revamped its Covid.gov website, replacing it with a detailed presentation focusing on the controversial “lab leak” theory of the SARS-Cov-2 virus's origins.

Previously a hub for information on testing, vaccines, treatments, and long Covid, the site now critiques Dr. Anthony Fauci, the World Health Organisation (WHO), and leadership in New York during the pandemic’s early stages, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

“This administration prioritises transparency above all else,” a senior official told journalists, despite evidence to the contrary. “The American people deserve to know the truth about the COVID pandemic, and we will always find ways to communicate that message.”

The origins of the virus have been widely debated since it emerged from Wuhan, China, in early 2020. The central dispute revolves around whether the virus accidentally leaked from a Wuhan laboratory studying coronaviruses, or if it resulted from a natural spillover event from a market selling live animals, meat, and fish.

The Wuhan Institute of Virology, which studied coronaviruses, was partially funded by the US government through the National Institutes of Health (NIH), fueling further controversy. To prevent political fallout, President Joe Biden pardoned Fauci as concerns grew about potential attacks during a potential Trump return.

Although definitive answers are elusive, many scientists still favor the natural spillover theory, which has been suggested in studies like the August 2024 article in the Journal of Virology. Previous pandemics, including the 2003 SARS-CoV-1 outbreak and the 1918 influenza pandemic, are believed to have been caused by similar spillover events, such as human-pig interactions.

In contrast, the lab leak theory has gained prominence in right-leaning circles and has been heavily featured in Republican-led hearings. The theory has sparked calls for accountability from figures like Fauci and for defunding institutions like the NIH.

The Trump administration’s new website harshly criticizes the NIH, claiming its procedures for overseeing risky research are “deficient, unreliable, and pose a serious threat to both public health and national security.” It also accuses the NIH of fostering an environment that allowed evasion of federal record-keeping laws.

Messenger RNA (mRNA) technology, which enabled the rapid development of Covid-19 vaccines during Trump’s first term, has also faced criticism. High-profile figures in the new Trump administration, such as health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, a vocal vaccine skeptic, are now pushing for more scrutiny of mRNA’s role in pandemic response and vaccine development.

By Tamilla Hasanova

Source: caliber.az