United States of America has officially withdrawn from the World Health Organization (WHO), ending its membership in the UN health agency and cutting ties with one of its long-standing multilateral partners.
The withdrawal follows an executive order signed by US President Donald Trump a year ago, in which he criticised WHO’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic and accused the organisation of favouring China.
The US Department of Health and Human Services said the move was based on what it described as the WHO’s “mishandling” of the pandemic, failure to implement reforms, and political influence from member states.
The department said all US government funding to WHO has been terminated, US personnel and contractors have been recalled from the organisation’s headquarters in Geneva and its offices worldwide, and hundreds of US engagements with WHO have been suspended or discontinued.
In a joint statement, US Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy and Secretary of State Marco Rubio said: “The WHO tarnished and trashed everything that America has done for it.”
The statement added that the organisation had “abandoned its core mission and acted repeatedly against the interests of the United States,” including failing to return the American flag based at its Geneva headquarters.
WHO rejected the allegations, with Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus saying the withdrawal represented a loss for both the United States and the global health system. The organisation pointed to its work on polio eradication, HIV and AIDS programmes, maternal mortality reduction, and its international tobacco control treaty.
US has historically been one of the WHO’s largest donors but has not paid its membership fees for 2024 and 2025. WHO officials say the unpaid contributions have contributed to job losses at the organisation. WHO legal advisers have stated that the US is obliged to pay outstanding arrears estimated at $260 million, a claim the US government has rejected.
US officials said future disease surveillance and pathogen-sharing efforts would be conducted through bilateral relations with other countries, though they did not identify specific partners.
The WHO said the US withdrawal will be discussed at its upcoming executive board meeting scheduled from February 2 to 7, adding that the organisation’s secretariat would act in line with guidance from its governing bodies.