UPDATE - Former US chief medical advisor says before US House on COVID pandemic hearing 6 feet apart social distance rule 'arbitrary'

CHANGES IN HEADLINE, DECK, UPDATES WITH FAUCI'S WORDS

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - Dr. Anthony Fauci, the doctor who led the US response to the COVID-19 pandemic under two presidents, has defended his record, denying that he attempted to cover up the virus' origins under grilling from Republican lawmakers.

Fauci, an immunologist who served as the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, testified on Monday before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce that he has spent his life studying infectious diseases, and has tried to stop them to protect the American people.

Asked if he would have any reason to cover up the origins of the COVID-19 virus, he replied: "Absolutely not. And that's the reason why it was important to get people together to discuss this in a transparent way."

"The accusation being circulated that I influenced the scientists to change their minds by bribing them with millions of dollars in grant money is absolutely false, and simply preposterous," he added, referring to allegations that he sought to unduly influence scientists probing whether the virus was manufactured in a lab.

Fauci noted that the “six feet apart” social distancing recommendation he promoted was "arbitrary," lacking scientific basis, and “sort of just appeared.”

An unclassified summary of US intelligence assessments found that most of the agencies determine with varying levels of confidence that the pandemic most likely began as a result of natural phenomena, though one agency pointed the finger "with moderate confidence" that it developed as a result of a "laboratory-associated incident." No consensus has emerged since the findings were made public in June 2023.

The three-and-a-half-hour testimony is Fauci's first before a Republican-led House panel. The House Energy and Commerce Committee oversees US health agencies.

More than 6.8 million people have died from COVID-19 worldwide.

*Writing by Serdar Dincel in Istanbul