On Monday, President Trump took swift action to withdraw the United States from the World Health Organization (W.H.O.), a decision public health experts warn could weaken the nation’s role as a global health leader and hinder efforts to combat future pandemics.
In an executive order issued just hours after his inauguration, Trump outlined his reasons for the withdrawal, citing the W.H.O.’s “mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic” and its “failure to adopt urgently needed reforms.” He also criticised the organisation for requiring what he described as “unfairly onerous payments” from the United States while China contributes significantly less.
The decision did not come as a surprise. Trump has been a vocal critic of the W.H.O. since 2020, accusing the organisation of mishandling the coronavirus response and threatening to cut U.S. funding. In July 2020, he initiated steps to formally withdraw the country from the agency. However, after losing the 2020 election, the withdrawal was blocked by President Joe Biden on his first day in office, January 20, 2021.
Leaving the W.H.O. would have significant implications. It could sever the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) from access to global health data shared by the organisation. For example, in 2020, China released the genetic sequence of the novel coronavirus to the W.H.O., which then distributed the information worldwide.
The W.H.O. has recently faced criticism from conservatives over its work on a proposed “pandemic treaty,” designed to strengthen global pandemic preparedness. The treaty aimed to establish legally binding policies for pathogen surveillance, rapid data sharing during outbreaks, and boosting vaccine and treatment manufacturing capacity. Talks on the treaty collapsed last year, with some U.S. Republican lawmakers arguing that it posed a threat to American sovereignty.
Lawrence O. Gostin, a public health law expert at Georgetown University and a participant in treaty negotiations, described the U.S. withdrawal as “a grievous wound” to public health and “an even deeper wound to American national interests and national security.”
The World Health Organization, founded in 1948 with significant U.S. support, is a United Nations agency with a mission to address global health challenges. Its efforts include providing aid to conflict zones like Gaza and monitoring emerging epidemics such as Zika, Ebola, and COVID-19. The W.H.O.’s annual budget is approximately $6.8 billion, with the United States traditionally contributing a significant share.
Per a congressional resolution from the agency’s founding, the United States must give a year’s notice and settle its financial obligations for the current fiscal year before formally exiting. According to Gostin, this process could take time.
