After being a founding member of the World Health Organization for nearly 80 years, the United States has officially withdrawn on January 20, 2025. President Donald Trump signed many executive orders on day one of his second term, with one of them signaling that America will no longer be an active member out of the 194 countries in the organization. With the rising Trump administration issuing many changes in the U.S. very quickly, the decision to pull out of the W.H.O. will have major impacts, resulting in national debate with citizens concerned for the nation’s future.
The World Health Organization is a global partnership with the United Nations established in 1948. This agency coordinates to act on international health issues and helps countries around the world respond to public health emergencies. It plays an important role in protecting the health and security of its members by addressing the causes of disease, building stronger health systems, and responding to health emergencies. The United States has been actively a part of the W.H.O. throughout its history, providing support, insights, and regulations. America is known to have been one of the highest funders of the organization, contributing millions of dollars annually. However, with our nation’s withdrawal, funding has come to a halt, which may restrict lifesaving healthcare for those who need it, especially in developing countries that aren’t financially in the position to act alone.
Countries are not allowed to withdraw from the World Health Organization until a full year after an official notice. However, during President Trump’s first administration, the U.S. stopped funding and began to back out of the organization after the W.H.O. alerted the world in January 2020 of the danger of the COVID-19 pandemic through a public health emergency to which the U.S. did not respond. This does not require congressional approval. In 2020, Trump also consistently accused the W.H.O. of aiding China in allegedly covering up the origins of COVID-19 and allowing for its spread. According to whitehouse.gov, “The United States noticed its withdrawal from the World Health Organization in 2020 due to the organization’s mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic that arose out of Wuhan, China, and other global health crises, its failure to adopt urgently needed reforms, and its inability to demonstrate independence from the inappropriate political influence of W.H.O. member states. In addition, the W.H.O. continues to demand unfairly onerous payments from the United States, far out of proportion with other countries’ assessed payments. China, with a population of 1.4 billion, has 300% of the population of the United States, yet contributes nearly 90% less to the W.H.O.”
Trump’s threats to withdraw from the W.H.O. were later reversed by the Biden Administration when Former President Joe Biden was inaugurated in 2021. He restored U.S. membership and payments following Trump’s anti-W.H.O. views in his first administration. In 2023, America gave the W.H.O. $481 million.
Since then, the W.H.O. has made changes via bureaucratic processes that need input from its member states. According to cbsnews.com, “In 2024, the organization passed several amendments to its regulations on health emergencies. These include provisions on transparent reporting and coordinated financing. The W.H.O. has overseen negotiation processes to update an existing agreement known as the International Health Regulations, and to establish a potential new, “Pandemic Agreement. In May 2024, member states approved a set of revisions to the International Health Regulations but decided to extend the negotiation timeline for a pandemic agreement into 2025.” Despite these efforts, President Trump has officially decided during his inauguration that the U.S. will no longer be participating in the W.H.O. and their pandemic agreement negotiations.
Now, what does this look like for the future of the United States? Dr. Ashish Jha, former White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator, explains, “The most immediate domestic consequence may be that if the U.S. is not privy to the W.H.O.’s database of changing influenza strains, more Americans could be hospitalized and die from flu infections.” America would no longer have sufficient updates on the health information that provides the status on lingering infectious diseases, which could leave the American people more vulnerable to global health threats. More losses include the scientific collaborations that take place at about 70 centers in the United States that the W.H.O. hosts. This includes colleges such as John Hopkins University and Columbia University. Through these networks, scientists share findings and come to conclusions.
Implications go beyond just the health of the people. The U.S. would lose its dominant position as a leader in worldwide health policy. Dr. Jha continues to state, “‘W.H.O. is a pretty essential organization—and with America’s withdrawal, it creates a political vacuum that only one country can fill—and that is China.” China will likely step up for the organization in the absence of U.S. funding and leadership, which could allow China more political influence around the world. As a member, America created valuable ties with countries across the globe. The U.S. can certainly do a lot on its own, but it can’t do it all.
But what about the rest of the world? According to Dr. Tom Frieden, former Director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Without U.S. membership, the W.H.O. would lose its close ties to the C.D.C., which is regarded as one of the world’s leading public-health agencies.” Scientists from the C.D.C. form important connections between other nations and the United States, leading to the trade of ideas on new threats and policies that prevent diseases. The W.H.O. relies heavily on U.S. staff and expertise, particularly in tracking global influenza, so responding to such threats will be a challenge. The organization will also have to seek funding from other countries, with China being first in line. This leaves not only Americans scared for the future but also countries around the world, especially those living in developing countries.
According to a statement by the World Health Organization, “[It] regrets the announcement that the United States of America intends to withdraw from the organization. We hope the United States will reconsider, and we look forward to engaging in constructive dialogue to maintain the partnership between the U.S.A. and W.H.O., for the benefit of the health and well-being of millions of people around the globe.” As the United States takes a back seat from the World Health Organization, money that was intended to fund the agency can now flow into other purposes, such as military and infrastructure. However, the health of the American people is now vulnerable. With many other laws set in place by the Trump Administration that deal with D.E.I., the Paris Climate Agreement, and immigration, the future of America is unclear, and we must prepare for whatever comes our way.
