US President Donald Trump announced that the United States is withdrawing from the World Health Organization (WHO) after accusing the organization of mishandling the COVID-19 pandemic and other international health crises.
He further accused the WHO of being politically influenced by its member states and imposing unfair financial burdens on the US compared to other major nations. Trump commented that the WHO had “ripped off” the US while signing an executive order for the withdrawal shortly after his inauguration.
However, under US law, the country must provide a one-year notice period before withdrawing from the organization and settle any outstanding fees. Therefore, the US will remain a member of the WHO for the next 12 months.
The US is the WHO’s largest financial contributor, accounting for about 18% of its overall funding. Experts from both within and outside the WHO warn that the US departure could jeopardize key programs, including those addressing tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, and other health emergencies.
According to Trump’s order, negotiations on the WHO pandemic treaty will be halted, while US personnel working with the organization will be recalled and reassigned. The US will also seek new partners to take over essential WHO activities, and the 2024 US Global Health Security Strategy will be reviewed, rescinded, and replaced.
This move is not unexpected, as Trump had previously suspended $200 million in US contributions to the WHO between fiscal 2020-2021 and attempted to withdraw during his first term, accusing the organization of helping China mislead the world about COVID’s origins.
However, his term ended before the withdrawal could be completed, and Joe Biden later canceled the decision after his inauguration in January 2021. The WHO also denied this charge and confirmed that the organization still pressured China to share data regarding COVID-19’s origin.
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the global vaccine group Gavi, the European Commission, the World Bank, and Germany, the next-largest national donor, may need to step in to support the WHO, despite some of them having specific criteria for their donations.
