# Plain Language Summary: Accountability in Foreign Animal Research Act

This bill stops the U.S. government from funding animal research that happens in certain countries. Specifically, the National Institutes of Health (the main government agency that funds medical research) would be prohibited from giving money—through grants, contracts, or any other funding method—to support animal testing in China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia, and Venezuela. The bill also allows the government to add other countries to this list if they're considered foreign adversaries.

The practical effect is that American taxpayer money can no longer support animal research experiments conducted in these specific locations. If a researcher wanted to test a new drug on animals in one of these countries using federal funding, they wouldn't be able to get that money. This applies to all vertebrate animals (basically any animal with a backbone), so it covers everything from mice and dogs to primates used in medical research.

The bill's supporters likely argue this prevents American money from supporting research in countries the U.S. has concerns about, whether for political, security, or ethical reasons. For most Americans, this won't directly affect their daily lives, but it could impact the pace or location of certain medical research projects. Researchers who want to conduct animal studies in these countries would need to find alternative funding sources or move their work to other locations. The bill essentially uses funding as a way to enforce a policy about which countries the U.S. government will support for this type of research.

Accountability in Foreign Animal Research Act

McClain, Lisa C.

Accountability in Foreign Animal Research Act This bill prohibits the National Institutes of Health from conducting or supporting research that involves testing on vertebrate animals in China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia, or other countries determined to be a foreign adversary.