After almost 80 years of membership, the United States of America is officially no longer part of the World Health Organization (WHO).
The withdrawal process was initiated by President Donald Trump by executive order on January 20, 2025, the first day of his second term.
He cited the alleged “inadequate management of the COVID-19 pandemic” and “other global health crises” as the reason.
President Trump also expressed dissatisfaction with the “unfairly high payments” that the US allocates as a member of the international organization, according to the political portal The Hill.
The WHO is financed through voluntary donations and membership fees from member states, which vary depending on the size of the population and wealth of each country.
The executive order included instructions to freeze all US funding to the WHO, redeploy US contractors working for the organization and seek other health organizations for the US to join.
WHO Director Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus expressed his “hope that the US will reconsider its decision and rejoin” the organization at a press conference earlier this month. Ghebreyesus described the decision as “a situation in which both the US and the rest of the world lose”.
– This is not a good decision, I want to be honest, because I believe that there are many things that are done through the WHO that benefit the USA, and only the WHO can ensure this, especially when it comes to health security issues – said Ghebreyesus. “That’s why I say that the US cannot be safe without cooperation with the WHO.”
Trump has already tried to withdraw the US from the organization during his first term. Following the 2025 executive order, the WHO expressed its “regret for this decision” in a statement and emphasized the role of the US as a key partner and founding member of the organization.
– With the participation of the USA and other member states, WHO has implemented the largest set of reforms in its history during the last seven years to improve accountability, efficiency and influence in countries. This work continues – the organization stated. “We hope the US will reconsider its decision and look forward to a constructive dialogue to maintain the partnership between the US and WHO, for the benefit of the health and well-being of millions of people around the world.”
On the WHO website, in a note marked with an asterisk next to the list of member countries, it is stated that the US “has expressed its intention to withdraw from the World Health Organization, with a scheduled effective date of January 22, 2026.”
On Thursday, the withdrawal process became official. Although the WHO statute does not specify the procedure by which member states can leave the organization, the US Congress set the conditions for withdrawal when it approved US membership in the organization under the Truman administration in 1948.
The 1948 joint resolution stated that “the United States reserves the right to withdraw” with a mandatory one-year notice, which the Trump administration respected. The legislation also mandated that the US must meet all of its “financial obligations” to the WHO.
Although the biennial budget of Congress already provided funding for the WHO until 2025, the executive order required the suspension of US payments. The Secretary of State told NPR radio that the US “will not make any payments to the WHO before our withdrawal.”
“The costs borne by American taxpayers and the American economy following the failure of the WHO during the COVID-19 pandemic – and since then – are already too great,” the US State Department stated.
