The House passed the COVID-19 Origins Act of 2023 in a 419-0 vote. The Senate also passed the bill unanimously earlier this month.
The bill would require the Office of the Director of National Intelligence to declassify information on COVID-19’s origins within 90 days and provide a report to Congress with “redactions only as necessary to protect sources and methods.”
President Biden has not stated whether he will sign the bill. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the president is committed to uncovering the pandemic’s origins but also wants to protect classified information, according to NPR.
Lawmakers’ push to declassify COVID-19 information comes after the Energy Department identified a lab leak as the most likely cause of the COVID-19 pandemic in late February, though officials said the conclusion was made with “low confidence.”
