Missouri was the first in the US to file a lawsuit against China over a pandemic, Fox News reported.

Stat officials accuse the Chinese government of misinforming the complexity of the coronavirus pandemic and claim compensation for the "the enormous loss of life, human suffering, and economic turmoil" resulting from the disease.

Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt has also joined the initiative.

“An appalling campaign of deceit, concealment, misfeasance, and inaction by Chinese authorities unleashed this pandemic,” the suit reads. “During the critical weeks of the initial outbreak, Chinese authorities deceived the public, suppressed crucial information, arrested whistleblowers, denied human-to-human transmission in the face of mounting evidence, destroyed critical medical research, permitted millions of people to be exposed to the virus, and even hoarded personal protective equipment—thus causing a global pandemic that was unnecessary and preventable."

Earlier, state authorities told Fox News that Missouri has confirmed 5,963 COVID-19 cases. The death toll has reached 215.