Sen. McSally bill would allow Americans to sue China over COVID-19
Jul 21, 2020, 12:45 PM
(AP Photo/Andy Wong)
(AP Photo/Andy Wong)
PHOENIX – U.S. Sen. Martha McSally is hopeful that a coronavirus-related bill she is working on will bring relief to the United States by way of China.
The legislation introduced Monday would let Americans sue China in federal court over the pandemic, which was first reported in Wuhan, China, at the end of December.
“We’re not a prolitigious approach to everything but in this case…” McSally said Tuesday on KTAR News 92.3 FM’s The Mike Broomhead Show.
“The calamity has been real and impactful to Americans,” she said, pointing to deaths and layoffs.
The Civil Justice for Victims of COVID Act from McSally and a handful of other Republicans, would authorize freeezes of the Chinese government’s assets and strip its sovereign immunity, among other goals.
China would be forced to “pay for what they’re responsible for, which is unleashing this virus on the world,” McSally said.
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Nearly 4 million cases of the disease have been confirmed in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as of Tuesday.
The same day, Arizona health officials reported 3,500 new positive tests.
The measure would function in much the same way as the 2016 Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act, which passed in 2016 and permitted civil lawsuits to be filled against a foreign state under specific circumstances.
“Judiciary Committee Chair Lindsey Graham said he was going to move this through his committee,” McSally said of the new bill.
“We’ve been working on it for the last several months.”
