IV 
109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 377 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the Government 
of the People’s Republic of China should adhere to internationally recog-
nized health standards by prohibiting the use of antiviral medication 
to protect their livestock, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 22, 2005 
Mr. ENGLISH of Pennsylvania submitted the following resolution; which was 
referred to the Committee on International Relations 
RESOLUTION 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that 
the Government of the People’s Republic of China should 
adhere to internationally recognized health standards by 
prohibiting the use of antiviral medication to protect 
their livestock, and for other purposes. 
Whereas an influenza outbreak poses an imminent threat to 
the lives of peoples of all nations; 
Whereas many migratory birds carry an avian form of influ-
enza and oftentimes transmit the virus to chickens along 
their route; 
Whereas avian influenza may mutate to a form that affects 
humans and can be transmitted through the digestion of 
chicken meat;
•HRES 377 IH 
Whereas the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organiza-
tion has recommended for several years that countries try 
to eradicate infectious animal diseases by slaughtering in-
fected flocks and increasing safety measures on farms; 
Whereas World Health Organization officials have rec-
ommended for years that no antiviral medication be used 
to treat avian flu in farm animals because of the poten-
tial of the virus to mutate into strains that cannot be 
treated by antiviral medications; 
Whereas researchers in Hong Kong have reported that the 
H5N1 flu virus has been circulating in mainland China 
for at least eight years, and Chinese farms have suffered 
major outbreaks in 1997, 2001, and 2003; 
Whereas the Government of the People’s Republic of China 
did not seek the advice of any scientist, veterinarian, or 
contagious disease expert from any foreign country nor 
did they notify any foreign government of the H5N1 out-
breaks which could have such an horrific impact on world 
health; 
Whereas the Government of the People’s Republic of China 
has ignored the advice of every international organization 
dedicated to the containment of disease, and encouraged 
their farmers to protect their chickens from the H5N1 
flu virus by giving them the drug amantadine rather than 
taking simple steps to limit their contact with migratory 
birds; 
Whereas amantadine can no longer effectively treat people in-
fected with the H5N1 flu virus because Chinese farmers, 
following the advice and assistance from the Government 
of the People’s Republic of China, immunized their chick-
ens with amantadine, overexposing the antiviral medica-
•HRES 377 IH 
tion to the H5N1 flu virus, allowing the virus to mutate 
into forms untreatable with amantadine; 
Whereas amantadine is the least expensive drug available in 
order to treat people infected with the flu virus; 
Whereas governments have the responsibility of protecting 
their citizens, not their poultry, against outbreaks of con-
tagious, deadly diseases; 
Whereas the countries neighboring the People’s Republic of 
China, the developing nations of southeast Asia, can no 
longer afford to protect their citizens from the imminent 
threat of an influenza outbreak due to the ineffectiveness 
of amantadine; 
Whereas only the wealthiest nations of the world can afford 
to protect their citizens from a global influenza outbreak 
due to the ineffectiveness of amantadine; and 
Whereas a global influenza outbreak could be exponentially 
more lethal because all countries will have vastly de-
creased stockpiles of medications capable of treating peo-
ple infected with influenza since the relatively inexpensive 
amantadine is no longer effective against the H5N1 flu 
virus: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Rep-
resentatives that— 
(1) the Government of the People’s Republic of 
China has endangered the lives of millions of people 
in every region of the world, and should adhere to 
internationally recognized health standards by pro-
hibiting the use of antiviral medication to protect 
their livestock; and
•HRES 377 IH 
(2) the Government of the People’s Republic of 
China should no longer purposefully hide any patho-
genic outbreaks or mutations that could be harmful 
to the global community, but should instead consult 
with experts from both within their government and 
outside their country to handle situations that could 
endanger millions of lives in the most appropriate 
and responsible manner. 
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