• The White House has redirected COVID.gov to endorse the lab leak theory regarding COVID-19 origins.
• The new site argues that the virus likely originated from a Wuhan laboratory, providing five main claims.
• Former CDC funding cuts accompany this shift in communication strategy, reflecting ongoing political clashes over public health policy.
• The page heavily criticizes former officials, particularly Anthony Fauci, for promoting natural origin theories.
• The lab leak theory has seen a resurgence of support among several U.S. agencies as debates regarding its validity continue.

The White House has recently revamped the COVID.gov website to promote the controversial theory that the coronavirus originated from a laboratory in Wuhan, China. This shift reflects a new narrative, highlighting claims made by the Republican-led House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic that argue the pandemic began due to a “laboratory or research-related accident” and presenting evidence purported to support this view, according to ABC News.

The updated website now features five main assertions, including the assertion that the virus has unique biological characteristics not found in nature, and references to Wuhan as home to China’s foremost SARS research lab. It also cites the lack of evidence for a natural origin, stating, “By nearly all measures of science, if there was evidence of a natural origin it would have already surfaced. But it hasn't,” according to Dawn.

This overhaul of the COVID.gov page comes in the context of broader shifts in public health policy, including a significant reduction in federal COVID-19 funding. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has slashed $11.4 billion in pandemic-related funding, further complicating the public health landscape as various agencies grapple with ongoing challenges tied to the virus, noted Le Monde.

The page has received mixed reactions, particularly towards Dr. Anthony Fauci, former chief medical advisor to President Biden, who has been criticized for his stance supporting natural origins of the virus. Critics accuse Fauci of promoting a narrative that downplays the lab leak theory, while supporters defend his previous statements acknowledging the possibility of both theories. “Fauci didn’t plan a pandemic, he planned for a pandemic, because that was his job,” remarked a defense supporter, reflecting ongoing tensions in the public discourse surrounding the pandemic, as highlighted by Newsweek.

The lab leak theory, once dismissed as a conspiracy theory, has garnered attention from multiple U.S. intelligence agencies, with recent reports indicating a shift in perspectives. The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Energy have indicated varying levels of support for the lab leak theory, intensifying debates surrounding its veracity, as reported by TRT Global.