The House established a Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic. After two years of work, 25 hearings, and 38 interviews, the committee released a 520-page report in December 2024 titled "After Action Review of the COVID Pandemic: The Lessons”.

Review the 11-page table of contents for a summary of the committee's key conclusions on topics like lockdowns, masking policies, school closures, virus origins, New York nursing home policies, taxpayer funds, COVID mandates, WHO failures, document tampering, evidence concealment, and congressional obstruction. Each item highlights important issues in public health and policy dialogue. Here are key takeaways relevant to our mission.

U.S. COVID-19 policies harmed Children

Americans voiced concerns early on about the harm done to children by U.S. policies like lockdowns, quarantines, masks, and school guidance. The committee highlighted three key findings about this harm:

Forcing children to wear masks “caused more harm than good.”
Lockdowns disrupted children’s development.
Unscientific school closures worsened physical health and increased mental and behavioral problems.

Mandates created more harm than advantages.

There is no true informed consent when Americans feel pressure from mandates related to jobs or society. It's encouraging that health freedom supporters now have a record in Congress to discuss with lawmakers about potential future mandates. The report recalls that President-elect Biden promised not to mandate COVID vaccines in December 2020, but broke that promise the following year. Mandates affected military personnel, federal employees, healthcare workers, and Head Start employees receiving federal funds, and were enforced by OSHA on private employers. This led to “vaccine passports” that effectively restricted movement. College mandates pushed many young Americans, who were at greater risk of Myocarditis, to get vaccinated. The economic impact was severe, as many lost jobs for refusing the vaccine, while others suffered injuries from it. Military mandates were especially damaging, causing thousands to leave service and a 25% decrease in recruitment.

The committee found that the mandates lacked scientific support and overlooked natural immunity. The vaccines did not stop the virus from spreading or prevent infections. The report highlighted how the mandates damaged public trust, increased vaccine hesitancy, led to job losses for thousands, and worsened political divides. It noted that many who lost their jobs likely had natural immunity from previous infections, which might have been stronger than vaccine immunity. The committee expressed concern for health care workers, who went from being deemed heroes to being jobless if they did not comply.

Experimental product mandates undermined informed consent.

The report says that mandatory vaccination policies hurt the relationship between doctors and patients. The committee notes that the vaccines were released under Emergency Use Authorization (EUA), which did not provide the same informed consent standards as fully approved drugs. Additionally, since the vaccines were not covered under the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act, providers were not required to give Vaccine Information Statements.

Covering children's faces was harmful and extreme.

The committee confirmed that forcing masks on children aged two and older caused more harm than good. They criticized the CDC for ignoring WHO guidelines, which do not recommend masks for kids under five and noted that children aged 6-11 could face psychological and learning issues. The WHO also stated that masking during physical activities could be dangerous. The CDC knew early on that COVID posed less risk to children than to adults, yet many kids wore masks longer than necessary. The CDC did not consider speech or language issues as valid reasons for mask exemptions. Reports indicate that strict policies led to a sharp rise in young clients needing speech-language therapy. Additionally, isolation from peers further harmed children's speech and language development.

Lockdowns led to reduced IQ and speech delays.

Children born during the pandemic have lower IQs than those born before it. Reduced interactions with adults resulted in less language learning. Pandemic policies contributed to more language disorders, emotional and behavioral issues, and difficulties in social communication among children.

School closures were not needed and caused harm.

The committee found that the CDC was improperly influenced by the American Federation of Teachers on school closure policies, which lasted longer than necessary. They discovered that schools were not as dangerous for spreading infection as claimed, teachers did not have a higher risk of severe COVID illness, and children were generally less vulnerable to the virus. Countries that closed schools did not have lower transmission rates compared to those that stayed open.

The committee noted that the CDC ignored or distorted data, harming children's physical and mental health and academic performance. School closures had a severe impact, especially on already struggling schools, with a lasting effect and no recovery seen in students. Standardized test scores indicated that children lost significant academic progress. The less disruption children faced from school closures, the better their academic results. Low-income and minority communities were affected more severely, with about 230,000 students missing from public schools.

Increased isolation and loss of access to resources led to a rise in behavioral and mental health problems, including more suicide attempts. Children spent too much time on screens instead of engaging in sports and outdoor activities and missed school lunches. Consequently, childhood obesity rates doubled, and cases of Type 2 diabetes rose by 182%. The committee estimated that students affected by these closures could lose $70,000 in lifetime income, which could contribute to a downturn in state economies and a potential loss of $28 trillion to the U.S. economy over the century.

Masking policies were not based on science, and the Biden administration overstepped its authority with mandates.

The CDC's mask rule for public transport was ruled illegal because the agency lacked the power to enforce it. This rule avoided the legal steps needed for public feedback. A committee determined that the 15 studies the CDC used to justify its mask policy were flawed, lacking control groups and not considering all relevant factors. The conclusions drawn by the CDC from these studies were not backed by the evidence, which the media then repeated.

The 6-foot social distancing rule had no scientific basis.

Social distancing was a key part of the U.S. pandemic response. It was enforced by governments and businesses, leading to business failures and school closures. The CDC set specific distance guidelines to help reduce coronavirus spread, but these guidelines lacked scientific backing and harmed many Americans. Dr. Anthony Fauci stated under oath that the 6-foot rule "sort of just appeared" without any discussion or supporting research. He noted that there was no evidence or trials related to this standard. The committee correctly found this unacceptable for the American public.

The federal government deliberately spread false information and suppressed Americans.

The committee found the federal government “perpetrated COVID-19 misinformation.” The executive branch spread misleading information to persuade Americans to accept their COVID policies while silencing those who questioned them. The federal government's actions, especially in controlling social media, made it difficult for people to make informed choices about COVID vaccines and other related products.

Federal injury tracking and compensation programs are a failure

The committee advocated for Americans harmed by experimental products, stating it's contradictory to label the vaccine injured as “anti-vax,” because one must be vaccinated to suffer a serious adverse event. They criticized the government for dismissing injured Americans and found existing systems meant to identify and compensate injuries are not working. They called VAERS “insufficient and not transparent,” noting that many who reported injuries did not receive follow-up contact even months later. The committee expressed concerns that safety signals, particularly for neurological issues, might be overlooked. They also noted the CDC's lack of transparency regarding the V-Safe database, defending against data requests from various groups. The committee evaluated the Countermeasures Injury Compensation Program (CICP) and found it inefficient, unfair, and not transparent in handling claims, with only 25 percent resolved and a denial rate exceeding 98 percent. They highlighted unclear decisions, such as awarding one myocarditis claim $370,376 and another only $1,033. The committee questions whether the CICP can fairly judge claims related to government-mandated countermeasures tied to vaccine policy.

The pandemic treaty is not helpful and could be harmful.

The congressional committee revealed that the pandemic treaty might actually harm the United States, rather than help it. They found that the WHO did a poor job responding to the International Health Regulations (IHR), and a new treaty wouldn’t fix those issues. The WHO also failed to hold China accountable for violating these regulations and for hiding critical information about the virus.

The report distinguished COVID “vaccines” as therapeutics, which has implications for public perception. Officials called these shots “vaccines,” which suggests they are “safe and effective.” Many Americans would likely not have accepted an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) “therapeutic.” The findings were presented in a letter signed by Dr. Brad Wenstrup, the Chairman of the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic.

In summary

The report shares key information about COVID health mandates. We suggest reading it to grasp the evidence. It supports defending our rights and stresses the importance of independent state health departments and engaged citizens. Federal agencies claim vaccines are safe in pregnancy, but who is liable if they are wrong? State and local governments play a vital role in preventing federal overreach. This report is a positive move toward making the government accountable for the effects of pandemic policies on Americans.