Trump Signs Executive Order to Restrict Virus Research Amid Pandemic Concerns
Measures aim to enhance the safety of biological research and limit federal funding for foreign projects.
On May 5, 2025, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order intended to enhance the safety and security of biological research.
The announcement included a series of measures intended to restrict certain virology research that the administration deems dangerous, linking it to the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The executive order mandates the cessation of federal funding for specific research programs conducted abroad, particularly those involving so-called "gain of function" research.
This type of research intentionally modifies pathogens to make them more virulent or transmissible, with the aim of studying virus evolution to prevent future pandemics and develop vaccines.
However, critics argue that the potential risks of such research may outweigh its benefits.
The Trump administration asserts that these research practices contributed to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has claimed over a million lives in the United States and millions more worldwide.
Officials suggest that the SARS-CoV-2 virus originated from such research funded, in part, by the United States at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China, the city identified as the epicenter of the outbreak.
Marty Makary, the new head of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), remarked that the pandemic might have resulted from scientists manipulating nature in laboratories using technology exported from the U.S.
The theory of a laboratory leak—once dismissed as conspiracy—theory—has gained traction in recent months and has received varying levels of support from American authorities, although it remains a subject of considerable debate among scientists.
The definition of what constitutes "gain of function" research remains contentious, particularly concerning funding for research conducted at the Wuhan facility.
In the executive order, China is specifically cited as a country where such research will no longer receive U.S. funding.
Robert Kennedy Jr., the U.S. Secretary of Health, stated that no laboratory is immune to leaks and emphasized that the new measures aim to prevent potential future accidents that could endanger humanity.
The decree also calls for the development of a strategy to regulate, limit, and oversee this type of research within the United States, as well as the ending of funding for additional research in countries deemed to lack adequate oversight.
This initiative is part of broader efforts by the current U.S. government to reshape American scientific and health policy, which includes significant cuts to research budgets and substantial layoffs of scientists in federal agencies.
The announcement included a series of measures intended to restrict certain virology research that the administration deems dangerous, linking it to the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The executive order mandates the cessation of federal funding for specific research programs conducted abroad, particularly those involving so-called "gain of function" research.
This type of research intentionally modifies pathogens to make them more virulent or transmissible, with the aim of studying virus evolution to prevent future pandemics and develop vaccines.
However, critics argue that the potential risks of such research may outweigh its benefits.
The Trump administration asserts that these research practices contributed to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has claimed over a million lives in the United States and millions more worldwide.
Officials suggest that the SARS-CoV-2 virus originated from such research funded, in part, by the United States at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China, the city identified as the epicenter of the outbreak.
Marty Makary, the new head of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), remarked that the pandemic might have resulted from scientists manipulating nature in laboratories using technology exported from the U.S.
The theory of a laboratory leak—once dismissed as conspiracy—theory—has gained traction in recent months and has received varying levels of support from American authorities, although it remains a subject of considerable debate among scientists.
The definition of what constitutes "gain of function" research remains contentious, particularly concerning funding for research conducted at the Wuhan facility.
In the executive order, China is specifically cited as a country where such research will no longer receive U.S. funding.
Robert Kennedy Jr., the U.S. Secretary of Health, stated that no laboratory is immune to leaks and emphasized that the new measures aim to prevent potential future accidents that could endanger humanity.
The decree also calls for the development of a strategy to regulate, limit, and oversee this type of research within the United States, as well as the ending of funding for additional research in countries deemed to lack adequate oversight.
This initiative is part of broader efforts by the current U.S. government to reshape American scientific and health policy, which includes significant cuts to research budgets and substantial layoffs of scientists in federal agencies.
