President Donald J. Trump signed a sweeping executive order Monday banning federal funding for gain-of-function research conducted in China, Iran, and other nations deemed to have “insufficient research oversight. ” This marks a dramatic shift in U.S. policy toward biological research with pandemic potential.
“It’s a big deal,” President Trump said during the signing ceremony in the Oval Office. “Could’ve been that we wouldn’t have had the problem we had if we had this done earlier.”
Gain-of-function research involves altering viruses or other microorganisms to increase their transmissibility or virulence. Such research was conducted at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, which Trump and others have long pointed to as the likely source of the COVID-19 pandemic. The president’s new directive halts not only current but also future federal funding for such studies abroad.
“There’s no laboratory that does this right. There’s no laboratory that’s immune from leaks,” said Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “This is going to prevent these kinds of inadvertent leaks from happening in the future and endangering humanity.”
The White House said the executive order will “drastically reduce the potential for lab-related incidents involving gain-of-function research, like that conducted on bat coronaviruses in China by the EcoHealth Alliance and Wuhan Institute of Virology.”
The order empowers federal agencies to suspend or revoke funding for other types of biological research that could pose a threat to public health or national security, especially in countries where oversight is lacking. The White House emphasized that the funding ban will not obstruct legitimate, productive research to defend against biological threats.
“For decades, policies overseeing gain-of-function research on pathogens, toxins, and potential pathogens have lacked adequate enforcement, transparency, and top-down oversight,” the administration said in a fact sheet. “Researchers have not acknowledged the legitimate potential for societal harms that this kind of research poses.”
A recently launched White House web page promotes the theory that COVID-19 leaked from a lab, stating: “A lab-related incident involving gain-of-function research is the most likely the origin of COVID-19.” The page also criticizes former NIAID Director Dr. Anthony Fauci and Democrats for dismissing the lab leak theory during the pandemic.
A House Select Committee report previously revealed that the EcoHealth Alliance used federal funds to support gain-of-function research in Wuhan—allegations the group denies.
The new order also directs the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) to develop a new biosecurity framework within 120 days, replacing what it calls the inadequate 2024 “Dual Use Research of Concern” (DURC) policy. It mandates stronger oversight, audit capabilities, transparent reporting, and a prohibition on research with pathogens that enhance transmissibility or lethality without proper safeguards.
Additionally, the order requires all federally funded life sciences research institutions to certify that they are not participating in such research abroad. Violations could result in loss of funding and a five-year ban from federal grants.
President Trump also announced measures to boost domestic pharmaceutical manufacturing, including more FDA inspections and surprise visits to foreign drug production sites in tandem with the order.
“We had this crazy system in the United States where American pharma manufacturers… are put through the wringer with inspections, and the foreign sites get it a lot easier with scheduled visits, while we have surprise visits,” said FDA Commissioner Marty Markary.
Monday’s action underscores a broader effort by the Trump administration to reshape U.S. oversight of biological research and manufacturing—framed by the White House as a national security imperative.
“This order will protect Americans from lab accidents and other biosecurity incidents, such as those that likely caused COVID-19 and the 1977 Russian flu,” the White House said.
