US completes withdrawal from World Health Organization

The US has finalised its withdrawal from the World Health Organization one year after President Donald Trump announced America was ending its 78yearold commitment federal officials said Thursday But its hardly a clean breakThe US owes more than USD 130 million to the global health agency according to WHO And Trump administration officials acknowledge that they havent finished working out some issues such as lost access to data from other countries that could give America an early warning of a new pandemicThe withdrawal will hurt the global response to new outbreaks and will hobble the ability of US scientists and pharmaceutical companies to develop vaccines and medicines against new threats said Lawrence Gostin a public health law expert at Georgetown University In my opinion its the most ruinous presidential decision in my lifetime he saidThe WHO is the United Nations specialised health agency and is mandated to coordinate the response to global health threats such as outbreaks of mpox Ebola and polio It also provides technical assistance to poorer countries helps distribute scarce vaccines supplies and treatments and sets guidelines for hundreds of health conditions including mental health and cancer Nearly every country in the world is a memberTrump cited COVID19 in pulling US from WHOUS officials helped lead the WHOs creation and America has long been among the organizations biggest donors providing hundreds of millions of dollars and hundreds of staffers with specialised public health expertiseOn average the US pays USD 111 million a year in member dues to the WHO and roughly USD 570 million more in annual voluntary contributions according to the US Department of Health and Human ServicesIn an executive order issued right after taking office Trump said the US was withdrawing from WHO due to the organizations mishandling of the COVID19 pandemic and other global health crises He also cited the agencys failure to adopt urgently needed reforms and its inability to demonstrate independence from the inappropriate political influence of WHO member statesWHO like other public health organizations made costly mistakes during the pandemic including at one point advising people against wearing masks It also asserted that COVID19 wasnt airborne a stance it didnt officially reverse until 2024Another Trump administration complaint None of WHOs chief executives there have been nine since the organization was created in 1948 have been Americans Administration officials view that as unfair given how much the WHO relies on US financial contributions and on US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention personnelPublic health experts say US exit will hobble responses to threatsExperts say the US exit could cripple numerous global health initiatives including the effort to eradicate polio maternal and child health programmes and research to identify new viral threatsDr Ronald Nahass president of the Infectious Diseases Society of America called the US withdrawal shortsighted and misguided and scientifically recklessThe US has ceased official participation in WHOsponsored committees leadership bodies governance structures and technical working groups That would seem to include the WHO group that assesses what flu strains are circulating and makes critical decisions about updating flu shotsIt also signals the US is no longer participating in global flu informationsharing that guides vaccine decisions Such disease intelligence has helped Americans be at the front of the line when new outbreaks occur and new vaccines and medicines are quickly needed to counteract them and save lives Gostin saidTrump administration officials say they already have public health relationships with many countries and are working to ensure direct sharing of that kind of information rather than having WHO serve as a middleman But US officials did not give specifics about how many such arrangements are in placeGostin an expert on international public health treaties and collaborations said its unlikely the US will reach agreements with more than a couple dozen countriesMany emerging viruses are first spotted in China but is China going to sign a contract with the United States Gostin said Are countries in Africa going to do it Are the countries Trump has slapped with a huge tariff going to send us their data The claim is almost laughableGostin also believes Trump overstepped his authority in pulling out of WHO The US joined the organization through an act of Congress and it is supposed to take an act of Congress to withdraw he arguedUS still owes money WHO saysThe US is legally required to give notice one year in advance of withdrawal which it did but also to pay any outstanding financial obligations The US has not paid any of its dues for 2024 and 2025 leaving a balance of more than USD 133 million according to WHOAn administration official denied that requirement Thursday saying the US had no obligation to pay prior to withdrawing as a 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