US Officially Withdraws From WHO

by Staff Writer 23-01-2026 | 7:50 PM

Finalizing a long-standing goal of Donald Trump, the United States has officially withdrawn from the World Health Organization (WHO), leaving the UN agency without one of its biggest donors.

On Thursday, the US Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a joint statement saying that all US government funding to WHO had been terminated, and all personnel and contractors assigned or embedded with the organization have been recalled. It also said the US had ceased official participation in WHO-sponsored committees, leadership bodies, governance structures and technical working groups.

US President Donald Trump signed an executive order signalling the withdrawal on the 20th of January last year, having criticised the WHO for being too "China-centric" during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The US Department of Health and Human Services said it took the decision due to the WHO's alleged "mishandling" of the covid-19 pandemic, and its delay in declaring it as a global public health emergency and a pandemic during its early stages, costing the world critical weeks as the virus spread. Other reasons for the US' withdrawal from the WHO include the inability for the WHO to make urgently-needed reforms and political influence from WHO member states.

The WHO has rejected these claims and its director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the withdrawal was a loss for the US and the world.

Trump tried to leave WHO during his first term, then gave notice through an executive order on the first day of his second term that the US would leave the organization. By law, the US must give WHO a one-year notice and pay all outstanding fees before its departure.

The US still owes WHO roughly $260 million, but legal experts said the US is unlikely to pay up and WHO has little recourse.

Sources:https://www.hhs.gov/press-room/united-states-completes-who-withdrawal.html#:~:text=WASHINGTON%20%E2%80%94%20January%2022%2C%202026%20%E2%80%94,out%20of%20Wuhan%2C%20China%2C%20its