US Officially Withdraws from WHO

The United States formally withdrew from the World Health Organization (WHO), completing a move that health experts have warned for months could undermine both U.S. and global public health systems.

The withdrawal took effect on Thursday, following an executive order signed by U.S. President Donald Trump, who had announced that the United States would leave the UN agency on the first day of his presidency in 2025. Washington said the decision was driven by what it described as the WHO’s failures in handling the Covid-19 pandemic.

In a joint statement, the U.S. Departments of Health and State said American engagement with the WHO would now be strictly limited to actions necessary to implement the withdrawal.

“We have no plans to participate as an observer, and we do not intend to rejoin,” a senior U.S. government health official said.

U.S. officials said Washington intends to work directly with other countries, rather than through international organizations, on disease surveillance and public health priorities going forward.

Under U.S. law, a one-year notice period is typically required for withdrawal, along with the settlement of outstanding financial obligations estimated at around $260 million. However, a U.S. State Department official disputed that the law requires payment of any outstanding dues prior to departure.

Witnesses said the U.S. flag was removed from outside the WHO’s headquarters in Geneva on Thursday, underscoring the symbolic finality of the move.

The United States has taken steps in recent weeks to withdraw from several other UN-affiliated bodies, raising concerns among diplomats and analysts that Washington’s broader disengagement could weaken multilateral institutions. Some critics have also warned that Trump’s recently established “Peace Council” could further undermine the United Nations system.

The U.S. withdrawal has triggered a severe budget crisis at the WHO. The United States had been the organization’s largest financial contributor, accounting for roughly 18% of total funding.

As a result, the WHO has cut its senior management team by nearly half and scaled back operations. The organization is also expected to lay off around a quarter of its workforce by mid-year, according to internal planning documents.

The WHO has said the United States has not paid its assessed contributions for 2024 and 2025. A spokesperson told Reuters by email that member states will discuss the U.S. withdrawal and next steps during the organization’s executive board meeting next month.

Global health experts, including WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, have repeatedly urged Washington to reconsider.

“I hope the United States will rethink its decision and return to the World Health Organization,” Tedros said earlier this month. “This withdrawal is a loss for the United States and a loss for the rest of the world.”

The WHO said it has continued to exchange information with U.S. authorities over the past year, though it remains unclear how, or whether, that cooperation will continue following the formal withdrawal.

The move marks a significant rupture in global health governance, removing one of the WHO’s most influential members at a time when the world remains vulnerable to pandemics, emerging diseases, and widening health inequalities.