NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Martha McSally (R-Ariz.) announced legislation that would allow Americans to sue China for the COVID-19 pandemic.

The lawmakers plan to introduce the Stop China-Originated Viral Infectious Diseases (COVID) Act into legislation.

In a press release, they said the bill would "ensure the Chinese Communist Party faces consequences for its role in spreading the coronavirus... and empower Americans to sue China in U.S. court and seek compensation for the devastating harm the deadly virus has caused to the economy and human life."

“The costs are devastating: trillions of dollars in economic damage, more than 22 million American jobs lost, and over 150,000 deaths worldwide and counting," Sen. Blackburn said in a release. "Business owners and families who have lost loved ones deserve justice. Under this legislation, Americans will have the opportunity to take China to court in the U.S. and demand accountability for their lies and deceit.”

The legislation builds on existing law in the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act and eliminates sovereign immunity for states that spread biological agents.

“The Chinese government must be held accountable for the pain it’s inflicted across the United States,” Senator McSally said. “Our legislation to allow Americans to file lawsuits against the Chinese Communist Party for its role in perpetuating the global spread of the coronavirus will give the U.S. a piece of justice.”

The full bill can be