The United States (US) on January 22 exited the World Health Organization (WHO), following the required one-year notice period. In a statement, the US indicated that this fulfills President Donald Trump’s commitment under a related executive order he signed on January 20 last year. It stated the decision was driven by “profound failures” in the WHO’s mishandling of the Covid-19 pandemic; its persistent refusal to implement necessary reforms; and its lack of accountability, transparency, and independence. ALSO READ: Trump orders US to leave World Health Organization According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, withdrawal from WHO has been a stated priority for the Trump Administration since 2020. During his first term, President Trump sought to withdraw the US from WHO over its response to Covid-19. Meanwhile, in January last year, the WHO, in a statement, said it regretted the announcement that the United States of America intends to withdraw from the UN health agency. It pointed out that the US was a founding member of WHO in 1948 and has participated in shaping and governing WHO’s work ever since, alongside 193 other Member States, including through its active participation in the World Health Assembly and Executive Board. Also, it indicated that with the participation of the US and other member states, WHO has over the past seven years implemented the largest set of reforms in its history, to transform our accountability, cost-effectiveness, and impact in countries. What does the withdrawal mean? In line with President Trump’s Executive Order, the statement pointed out, the US government has taken a number of actions. These include that all US government funding to the WHO has been terminated; US personnel and contractors assigned to or embedded with the WHO have been recalled from the WHO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland and WHO offices worldwide. In addition, hundreds of US engagements with the organisation have been suspended or discontinued; the US has ceased official participation in WHO-sponsored committees, leadership bodies, governance structures, and technical working groups. For decades, the United States has been the world’s largest and most consequential contributor to global health, saving millions of lives, leading emergency responses to outbreaks and pandemics, and driving historic eradication efforts such as smallpox and polio. The US argued that withdrawing from WHO “restores long-overdue accountability and transparency for US taxpayers.” Although the WHO is composed of 194 member states, it said, the US has for decades carried a “disproportionate” share of the organisation’s financial burden. ALSO READ: US withdraws from over 60 UN, non-UN organisations Entering a new chapter in health-related partnership, response Following its withdrawal from the WHO, the US said it will continue to lead global health efforts independently—engaging partners directly, deploying resources efficiently, and ensuring accountability to the American people outside of WHO structures. Going forward, it added, it will continue its global health leadership through existing and new engagements directly with other countries, the private sector, non-governmental organisations, and faith-based entities. US led efforts will prioritise emergency response, biosecurity coordination, and health innovation to protect “America first” while delivering benefits to partners around the world, it observed. “Through targeted global cooperation, these efforts will protect Americans while delivering shared security and measurable benefits to US allies,” it stated.
