Compensation for the Victims of State Misrepresentations to the World Health Organization Act of 2023

Subjects: International Affairs


<html><body><pre>[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1519 Introduced in House (IH)]

&lt;DOC&gt;






118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1519

 To provide justice for victims of foreign state misrepresentation to 
         the World Health Organization, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 9, 2023

 Mr. Smith of New Jersey (for himself and Mr. Burgess) introduced the 
  following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To provide justice for victims of foreign state misrepresentation to 
         the World Health Organization, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Compensation for the Victims of 
State Misrepresentations to the World Health Organization Act of 
2023''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) There is a role for an international organization to 
        help mitigate infectious diseases that respect no boundaries.
            (2) The United States depends on an effective World Health 
        Organization (WHO) to make good, well informed, and transparent 
        public health decisions to contain infectious diseases.
            (3) In the past, the WHO played a critical role in 
        addressing and mitigating infectious diseases, such as the 1979 
        eradication of smallpox, which eradication the WHO coordinated 
        through a sustained global effort.
            (4) Without accurate information, the WHO cannot advise 
        Member States properly on the risks posed by infectious 
        diseases.
            (5) There are credible reports that in 2006, 2009, and 2011 
        the Government of Ethiopia misrepresented the nature and 
        seriousness of cholera epidemics in that country to the WHO 
        with a view towards minimizing the potential damage to their 
        economy.
                    (A) Those misrepresentations diminished the WHO's 
                effectiveness and the WHO transmitted inaccurate and 
                misleading information regarding the presence of 
                cholera to participating states.
                    (B) Other Member States relied on the misleading 
                and inaccurate information that the WHO communicated to 
                them to formulate public health policy, resulting in 
                loss of life, injury, and damage to property and 
                commercial interests to citizens outside of Ethiopia as 
                a consequence of that country's misrepresentations to 
                the WHO.
            (6) There are credible reports that WHO Member States 
        misrepresented facts concerning the Ebola outbreak to that 
        organization with a view towards minimizing the commercial 
        impact that a widely disseminated understanding of the risks 
        posed by the Ebola epidemic may have caused in their individual 
        economies.
                    (A) Those misrepresentations diminished the WHO's 
                effectiveness, and the WHO transmitted inaccurate and 
                misleading information regarding the communicability of 
                Ebola to participating States.
                    (B) Other Member States relied on the misleading 
                and inaccurate information that the WHO communicated to 
                them to formulate public health policy, resulting in 
                loss of life, injury, and damage to property and 
                commercial interests to citizens outside of the 
                misrepresenting States as a consequence of those 
                countries' misrepresentations to the WHO.
            (7) During the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, China 
        misrepresented the seriousness and nature of the novel 
        coronavirus to the WHO, with a view towards minimizing the 
        potential damage to their economy and international reputation.
                    (A) Those misrepresentations diminished the WHO's 
                effectiveness and the WHO transmitted inaccurate and 
                misleading information regarding the communicability of 
                the novel coronavirus to participating States.
                    (B) Other Member States relied on the misleading 
                and inaccurate information that the WHO communicated to 
                them to formulate public health policy, resulting in 
                loss of life, injury, and damage to property and 
                commercial interests to citizens outside of China as a 
                consequence of that country's misrepresentations to the 
                WHO.
            (8) In failing to relay accurate information to Member 
        States particularly at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, 
        Director-General Tedros relied on false information provided by 
        the People's Republic of China and the Chinese Communist Party 
        that the virus either could not be transmitted human-to-human 
        or had a low rate of transmission, and based on such reliance, 
        failed to thoroughly investigate the origins of the COVID-19 
        virus as well as contrary evidence of whistleblowers such as Li 
        Wenliang regarding the virus's transmissibility and lethality, 
        thereby abetting the People's Republic of China's efforts to 
        suppress information regarding a global health emergency. To 
        date he has failed to hold the People's Republic of China 
        accountable to International Health Regulations, which apply to 
        all WHO members, and mandate accurate reporting of disease 
        outbreaks.

SEC. 3. RESPONSIBILITY OF FOREIGN STATES FOR LOSS OF LIFE, INJURY, OR 
              OTHER DAMAGES RESULTING FROM CERTAIN MISREPRESENTATIONS 
              TO THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION.

    (a) In General.--Section 1605(a)(5) of title 28, United States 
Code, is amended by striking ``in which money damages are sought 
against a foreign state for personal injury or death, or damage to or 
loss of property, occurring in the United States and caused by the 
tortious act or omission of that foreign state or of any official or 
employee of that foreign state while acting within the scope of his 
office or employment;'' and inserting ``in which money damages are 
sought against a foreign state, for personal injury or death, or damage 
to or loss of property, occurring in the United States as a result of a 
willful or grossly negligent misrepresentation of information to the 
World Health Organization of the nature, seriousness, or 
communicability of an infections disease or other tortious act or 
omission of that foreign state or of any official or employee of that 
foreign state while acting within the scope of his office or 
employment;''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--Section 1605(a)(5)(B) of title 28, 
United States Code, is amended by striking ``misrepresentation, 
deceit,''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendment made by this section shall take 
effect 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.
                                 &lt;all&gt;
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