The state of Missouri filed a lawsuit on Tuesday against the Chinese government and its top institutions, including the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Ministry of Emergency Management and the People’s Government of Wuhan City, over their role in the outbreak of the novel coronavirus. The lawsuit states that Missouri is seeking recovery for “the enormous loss of life, human suffering, and economic turmoil experienced by all Missourians from the COVID-19 pandemic that has disrupted the entire world.”

The lawsuit also called the role played by the Chinese government and the other institutional parties an “appalling campaign of deceit, concealment, misfeasance, and inaction,” claiming that Chinese authorities caused the global pandemic by suppressing information, arresting whistle-blowers, destroying research, and deceiving the public.

The state of Missouri had more than 177 deaths and 5,800 confirmed cases as of April 20. According to the lawsuit, [l]iterally every Missourian has been adversely affected by Defendants’ course of conduct.” With this lawsuit, the state hopes to secure the financial losses lost as a result of the pandemic, which total billions of dollars. The official counts raised in this suit are public nuisance, abnormally dangerous activities, and breach of duty by allowing the transmission of COVID-19 and hoarding personal protective equipment.

While there have been various lawsuits over the COVID-19 outbreak within the US, including those pushing to improve protections for immigrants and inmates, claims of unsafe work environments for nurses and requested suspensions of particular service flights, this is the first instance of a state suing China over its involvement.

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