,,iv #aafth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,h4 ,,res4 #ibb ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,april #ad1 #bjbj,mr4 ,chabot 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,reschenthaler1 ,mr4 ,wilson of ,south ,carolina1 ,mr4 ,guest1 and ,mr4 ,yoho7 submitted the following resolution2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs1 and in addition to the ,committees on ,natural ,resources1 ,agriculture1 and ,energy and ,commerce1 for a period to be subsequently determined by the ,speaker1 in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned ,,resolution ,expressing the sense of the ,house of ,representatives that all nations should permanently close live wildlife markets and that the ,people's ,republic of ,china should cease spreading disinformation regarding the origins of coronavirus4 ,whereas zoonotic diseases1 diseases spread from animals to humans1 present a well-known threat for emerging infectious diseases2 ,whereas zoonotic spillovers at the wildlife-human interface are not infrequent events1 including diseases in the ,united ,states such as rabies1 ,west ,nile virus1 plague1 salmonellosis1 hantavirus1 or ,lyme disease2 ,whereas the wildlife trade poses a significant risk of disease transmission to people1 livestock1 and wildlife in countries of transit and import1 independent of their origin in the wild or in breeding facilities2 ,whereas zoonotic disease and subsequent pandemic threats from commercial trade for human consumption is generally independent of whether an animal is designated as threatened under domestic or international law1 whether an animal was removed from the wild or born in captivity1 or whether the trade is legal or illegal2 ,whereas severe acute respiratory syndrome 7,,sars7 transferred from a bat to a masked palm civet and then to humans in the context of a live wildlife market in ,china1 causing an outbreak in humans in #bjjb2 ,whereas ,middle ,east respiratory syndrome 7,,mers71 highly pathogenic avian influenza 7,,hpai ,h#e,n#a71 and ,ebola all transferred from animals to humans1 highlighting the threat posed to human health by zoonotic diseases and wildlife consumption2 ,whereas live wildlife markets1 a type of wet market1 sell both live and dead wild animals for human consumption1 sometimes including animals such as rats1 bats1 turtles1 snakes1 foxes1 civets1 pangolins1 and monkeys as well as cats and dogs2 ,whereas at live wildlife markets1 animals often are kept in cramped cages and other inhumane conditions1 as well as in close proximity to animals with which they would not come into contact in the wild2 ,whereas many live wildlife markets sell1 kill1 and store animals often in unhygienic conditions1 in which tables1 stalls1 and floors are often contaminated with feces1 bodily fluids1 and blood which are known to be vectors for disease transmission2 ,whereas it is widely believed that ,,sars-,co,v-#b originated in an infected bat and may have spread to humans through a second animal and spread within the ,huanan ,seafood ,wholesale ,market1 a live wildlife market in ,wuhan1 ,china2 ,whereas ,,sars-,co,v-#b which causes ,,covid-#ai has come to be commonly called by the generic name of novel coronavirus or simply coronavirus2 ,whereas1 on ,april #c1 #bjbj1 ,dr4 ,anthony ,fauci1 the ,director of the ,national ,institute of ,allergy and ,infectious ,diseases1 said1 ,i think we should shut down those things right away ''' it boggles my mind how when we have so many diseases that emanate out of that unusual human-animal interface1 that we don't just shut it down4 ,i don't know what else has to happen to get us to appreciate that1 and continued ,i think there are certain countries in which this is very commonplace4 ,i would like to see the rest of the world really lean with a lot of pressure on these countries that have that1 because what we are going through right now is a direct result of that42 ,whereas there have been widespread calls for the permanent closure of live wildlife markets from members of ,congress1 public health experts1 wildlife and animal health experts1 and animal welfare and conservation organizations2 ,whereas the ,prime ,minister of ,vietnam and the ,government of ,vietnam promptly drafted a directive to prohibit wildlife trade and consumption by ,april #a1 #bjbj2 ,whereas1 in ,december #bjai and early #bjbj1 ,chinese ,communist ,party officials initially sought to cover up the outbreak and have not been sufficiently transparent with the global community regarding the emergence and initial spread of ,,sars-,co,v-#b2 ,whereas ,chinese ,communist ,party officials have spread disinformation to cast doubt on the facts surrounding the emergence and initial spread of ,,sars-,co,v-#b2 ,whereas ,chinese ,communist ,party officials have suggested1 without evidence and in opposition to the widespread views of the medical community1 that the ,united ,states ,army brought ,,sars-,co,v-#b to ,china2 ,whereas in response to ,,sars-,co,v-#b1 the ,people's ,republic of ,china has taken steps to curtail the wildlife trade1 and the ,huanan ,seafood ,wholesale ,market has been closed2 ,whereas these steps have allowed for the continued exploitation of wildlife for several nonfood purposes2 ,whereas there have been reports that wet markets for livestock have been allowed to reopen in ,china2 and ,whereas the ,people's ,republic of ,china ordered the closure of live wildlife markets following the ,,sars outbreak1 but allowed their reopening as it subsided1 leading to another outbreak of ,,sars later that year3 ,now1 therefore1 be it ,that the ,house of ,representatives-- 7#a7 affirms that animals are subject to inhumane treatment in unsanitary conditions at live wildlife markets as well as through the exotic pet trade and other wildlife trafficking1 including in the ,united ,states2 7#b7 affirms the unanimous consensus of the medical community that ,,sars-,co,v-#b emerged in ,wuhan1 ,china1 and spread through the nexus of the ,huanan ,seafood ,wholesale ,market in that city2 7#c7 is encouraged by the ,people's ,republic of ,china's decision to permanently ban the sale of wild animals for human consumption and calls on it to sustain and strengthen these policies2 7#d7 calls on all governments to permanently close live wildlife markets2 7#e7 calls on the ,world ,health ,organization to advise member states to close live wildlife markets around the world2 7#f7 calls on the ,chinese ,communist ,party officials and the propaganda organs of the ,chinese ,communist ,party to cease spreading disinformation on the origins of1 and initial response to1 ,,sars-,co,v-#b2 and 7#g7 affirms the importance of the link between animal and human health and affirms the importance of continued research regarding zoonotic disease threats to humans4