Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) introduced a bill Thursday that would give Congress greater oversight of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and National Institutes of Health (NIH) following the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a copy of the measure exclusively obtained by The Post
The bill, known as the “End COVID Tyranny Act,” would mandate congressional appointment and term limits for the directors of both agencies, as well as require a majority vote by both chambers to approve a public health emergency lasting longer than 90 days.
An advisory committee for the CDC director would also be appointed by Congress and with the approval of the US comptroller general.
The measure would further mandate foreign research labs that receive US government funding to pass quarterly inspections on animal welfare and cleanliness standards.
The legislation comes six months after President Biden ended the COVID public health emergency and national emergency declaration begun under his predecessor, Donald Trump, in March 2020.
Many controversial COVID-era policies bypassed legislative approval, with federal and state authorities unilaterally imposing lockdowns, mask mandates and vaccine passports — only to face criticism and reverse course later.
Much of the frustration focused on conflicting public health advice from figures like NIAID Director Dr. Anthony Fauci, who pushed for strict COVID mandates while downplaying theories that the virus had leaked from a lab in Wuhan, China that was engaging in risky gain-of-function research funded by NIH.
While Trump instituted the first lockdowns via executive order, he resisted a national mask mandate and left office before having to consider federal COVID vaccination requirements.
Biden issued a federal employee mask mandate on his first day in office and required non-citizens to present proof of vaccination when entering the US.
The latter measure was rolled back in May, along with all vaccine requirements for federal workers, which had been blocked by an appeals court two months prior.
The Biden administration also saw an attempt to force vaccinations or COVID tests on private employers overturned by the Supreme Court.
“Mandates, vaccine passports, forced lockdowns, and further overreach imposed by Joe Biden and his army of federal bureaucrats during the COVID pandemic set an extremely dangerous precedent that still persists to this day,” Schmitt said in a statement.
“Missourians do not need faceless officials buried in a cubicle in Washington telling them how to live their lives – as Senator, I intend to protect Missourians from further rule-by-decree from unelected bureaucrats,” he added.
“The End COVID Tyranny Act limits the power of executive branch actors and returns the critical role of oversight to the Article I branch, the people’s branch.”
Schmitt’s bill would further ban mask mandates for federal Head Start programs until the end of 2024, allowing Congress to extend the measure periodically.
It would also require hospitals to inform patients about their right to receive visits from family and friends, and prevent unvaccinated or COVID-positive people from being denied the right to donate organs.