Legislators Must Approve 'Risky Research' Bill to Avert Future Pandemics

The decision on whether scientists should be permitted to modify viruses to make them more infectious and lethal to humans has, until now, been left to the scientists themselves and organizations like the National Institutes of Health. These entities have a vested interest in funding and carrying out such 'gain of function' research. However, a bill currently under review in the U.S. Senate, known as the Risky Research Review Act, could finally necessitate independent oversight in deciding if such risks are justifiable.

The History of 'Gain of Function' Research

In 2014, the Obama administration suspended federal funding for such research while investigating the best way to regulate it. In 2017, the Department of Health and Human Services implemented a policy to fund research with oversight from a government body known as the Potential Pandemic Pathogen Care and Oversight (P3CO) committee. Despite this, the P3CO committee has only reviewed three research applications since its inception, and NIH funding for the creation of more infectious and deadly viruses, including bat SARS coronaviruses, has continued unabated.

The Stakes are High

The implications are enormous: gain of function research on a potential pandemic pathogen likely caused the COVID pandemic, which resulted in 7 million deaths – 1 million of them in the United States. If left unchecked, such research could certainly trigger another pandemic.

The White House Proposal for Oversight

In May 2024, after more than a year of consideration, the White House revealed its much-anticipated proposal for the oversight of high-risk scientific research. The response was mixed. While some biosafety and biosecurity experts saw it as a small step forward, others, including us, saw the proposed policy as a step backward. The proposed policy is not only complex and convoluted, but it also allows scientists and institutions to engineer more infectious and deadly viruses to regulate themselves.

Hope on the Horizon

However, there is a glimmer of hope. The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee is close to approving the Risky Research Review Act. The bill, which enjoys bipartisan support, would establish an independent advisory panel, the Life Sciences Research Security Board, within the Executive Branch. This board would be tasked with reviewing all federally funded research with the potential to increase the transmissibility or virulence of any potential pandemic pathogen.

Controversies Surrounding the Legislation

Some critics argue that the legislation would harm biomedical research. These objections come from a small fraction of biomedical researchers who engineer more infectious and deadly viruses for a living and whose research would face substantive regulation for the first time. These researchers and their lobbyists claim that the bill could jeopardize federal grant-funded research broadly or that the review process would involve vast overreach to research with much lower risk. These claims are false. The bill focuses narrowly on the tiny fraction of biomedical research that risks causing a pandemic. It would have no impact whatsoever on the vast majority of research.

Loopholes in the Legislation

Even if the Senate passes the measure, there will be no federal regulation of privately funded research with the potential to cause pandemics. How big a concern is this loophole? It’s not merely theoretical. Last year, a media report – subsequently denied – recorded a drug company employee on a hidden camera discussing an apparent research program to make viruses more dangerous. Nevertheless, we believe regulation of federally funded research is the vital issue.

Private Companies and Pandemic Pathogens

For private companies, engineering potential pandemic pathogens to make them transmissible or virulent makes no sense. The research has no civilian applications and no medical or commercial value. Moreover, any accident in such research would expose a private company to unlimited liability. For these reasons, no private company likely has pursued or would pursue it. Still, as the bill progresses, lawmakers should consider adding an amendment to cover privately funded labs or introduce separate legislation if necessary.

Bottom Line

The decision on the Risky Research Review Act could be a turning point in preventing lab-generated pandemics. The bill also presents a rare opportunity for compromise and bipartisanship. We urge lawmakers from both parties to come together and support this bill, not as a political statement but as a unified effort to mitigate the risk of another lab-caused pandemic.

Reach out to your senators to urge them to support the Risky Research Review Act. Remind them that the public deserves a say in experiments that carry such enormous risks. After that, the U.S. should pursue an international agreement to ensure other countries regulate such dangerous research similarly. The life of every human being on the planet is at stake.

What are your thoughts on this issue? Do you believe the Risky Research Review Act is a necessary step in preventing future pandemics? Share this article with your friends and start a conversation. You can also sign up for the Daily Briefing, which is delivered every day at 6pm.