House bills targeting China would launch coronavirus 'origins' probe, allow victims' families to sue Beijing

House members plan to introduce two bipartisan bills on Friday that address the origins of the pandemic and China’s culpability.

The second bill, dubbed the "Never Again International Outbreak Prevention Act," calls for allowing families of coronavirus victims to sue China by stripping sovereign immunity from it and any other countries "that have intentionally misled the international community on the outbreak." It will be introduced by U.S. Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., and Conor Lamb, D-Pa. "We simply cannot outsource our public safety and national security to foreign nations." "In response to this current crisis, we must never again find ourselves caught off-guard, unable to protect our communities," a press release announcing the first bill says. "We should never again see nearly 600,000 American lives lost at risk and day to day life turned upside down."  Along with investigating the origin of the virus, the panel proposed by the first bill would also look into the response by the U.S. government and the private sector and determine precautionary steps to take for the future.