Governor Ron DeSantis signed a law today that will ban "Gain-of-Function" research in the State of Florida.
"I'm really glad that our lawmakers have just banned it and put the kibosh on Gain of Function type research in Florida," said Florida Surgeon General Joe Ladapo. "It's not so much that the research in itself is inherently risky, but also because it highlights a fundamental issue that was reflected in the pandemic: scientists are very smart individuals, but they sometimes, and frankly often, have very poor judgement."
Mainstream media like MSNBC routinely mocked people who claimed Covid-19 came from a lab. Social Media sites like Facebook censored stories making this claim. Dr. Anthony Fauci decried the theory.
However, Government sources have now admitted that Covid-19 did most likely come from a lab in Wuhan.
"We are the first state in the United States to formally ban Gain-of-Function research," said DeSantis at the bill signing at Oceans Church in Destin, Florida.
JUST IN: Gain-of-Function research has been BANNED in the State of Florida! pic.twitter.com/A30ur04fXD
— Chris Nelson 🇺🇸 🏝 (@ReOpenChris) May 11, 2023
FBI Director Christopher Wray stated Covid-19's spread was from "most likely a potential lab incident in Wuhan."
Ladapo says that although there was a pause on new Gain-of-Function research in 2014, the research that was already happening continued.
"That was the pause for research that was new. Research that was already going on continued, and in fact it did," said Ladapo.
"A report published in January, 2023 by the Inspector General outlines that this type of research was ongoing at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, funded, make no mistake, by our taxpayer dollars that were initially rewarded to the Eco Health Alliance," said Ladapo.
Ladapo referenced a report released in January by the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services which referenced problems with research grants related to the Wuhan Institute of Virology.
"When the Inspector General requested that Eco Health obtain more details from the Wuhan Institute of Virology for specifics of the type of work they were doing: crickets. There is no documentation. Nothing came out," said Ladapo.
Ladapo says poor judgement is reason to put a stop to Gain of Function research.
"Scientists, although very smart individuals, sometimes have very poor judgement. That type of poor judgement has not been rectified. In the meantime the right thing to do is to be wise and putting a real pause on it is a wise decision given the circumstances."
Specifically the law states:
"Enhanced potential pandemic pathogen research prohibited.—
(1) As used in this section, the term:
(a) "Enhanced potential pandemic pathogen" means a potential pandemic pathogen that results from enhancing the transmissibility or virulence of a pathogen. The term does not include naturally occurring pathogens circulating in or recovered from nature, regardless of their pandemic potential.
(b) "Enhanced potential pandemic pathogen research" means research that may be reasonably anticipated to create, transfer, or use potential pandemic pathogens that result from enhancing a pathogen's transmissibility or virulence in humans.
(c) "Potential pandemic pathogen" means a bacterium, virus, or other microorganism that is likely to be both:
1. Highly transmissible and capable of wide, uncontrollable spread in human populations; and
2. Highly virulent, making it likely to cause significant morbidity or mortality in humans.
(2) Any research that is reasonably likely to create an enhanced potential pandemic pathogen or that has been determined by the United States Department of Health and Human Services, another federal agency, or a state agency as defined in s. 11.45 to create such a pathogen is prohibited in this state.
(3) Any researcher applying for state or local funding to conduct research in this state must disclose in the application to the funding source whether the research meets the definition of enhanced potential pandemic pathogen research.
(4) The Department of Health shall exercise its authority under s. 381.0012 to enjoin violations of this section. (5) This section does not affect research funded or conducted before the effective date of this act."
