The United States has officially withdrawn from the World Health Organisation, citing the global health body’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and failure to implement necessary reforms, the White House announced on Thursday.
In a statement shared by the White House, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the US Department of State said the withdrawal was due to “the organisation’s mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic that arose out of Wuhan, China, its failure to adopt urgently needed reforms, and its inability to demonstrate independence from the inappropriate political influence of WHO member states.”
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the US would “be coordinating with WHO solely in a limited fashion to effectuate withdrawal.”
The process began on January 20, 2025, when President Donald Trump announced the plan to leave WHO.
