WHO chief urges nations to persuade US to reconsider exit

The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) has called on global leaders to urge Washington to reverse President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw from the UN health body, warning that the US risks losing access to vital disease outbreak information.

During a closed-door meeting with diplomats last week, WHO officials discussed the potential financial and operational impact of losing its largest donor. 

At a key budget meeting on Wednesday, German envoy Bjorn Kummel emphasized the urgency of the situation, stating, "The roof is on fire, and we need to stop the fire as soon as possible."

For the 2024-2025 period, the US was set to contribute approximately $988 million—around 14% of WHO's $6.9 billion budget. A budget report presented at the meeting revealed that WHO's emergency health operations heavily rely on US funding. Some programs, including those focused on polio eradication and HIV, face significant risks, while others, such as tuberculosis control in Europe, Africa, and the Western Pacific, could see substantial setbacks.

WHO finance director George Kyriacou warned that if the agency maintains its current spending levels, it could face severe cash flow issues by early 2026. He noted that attempts to claim previously allocated US funds had largely failed, and Washington had not yet settled its dues for 2024, worsening WHO's financial shortfall.

Tedros Appeals for US Return

Following the withdrawal, officials at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) were instructed to cease collaboration with WHO. However, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus assured that the agency is still providing American scientists with some data, though he did not specify what kind.

"We continue to give them information because they need it," Tedros said, urging other nations to engage with US officials to reconsider the decision. WHO is currently tackling health emergencies such as Marburg virus in Tanzania, Ebola in Uganda, and mpox in Congo.

Tedros also dismissed Trump's rationale for leaving, which cited WHO's alleged mismanagement of COVID-19, lack of reforms, and what Trump described as "unfairly onerous payments." Tedros countered that WHO had promptly warned about COVID-19 in early 2020 and had since implemented multiple reforms, including diversifying its funding sources.

He argued that the withdrawal was less about financial concerns and more about the critical health data the US would lose access to in the future. "Bringing the US back will be very important," he said. "And on that, I think all of you can play a role."

Kummel, a senior health official in Germany, described the US exit as WHO's "most extensive crisis in decades." Representatives from Bangladesh and France pressed WHO for details on how it plans to address the funding gap and which programs might be affected.

According to internal WHO documents obtained by the Associated Press, the agency is considering deep budget cuts, with some departments potentially facing reductions of up to 50% by the end of the year.

WHO declined to comment on whether Tedros had privately urged countries to advocate on its behalf.

Experts Warn of Consequences

Health experts warn that while the US departure is a significant setback, it also presents an opportunity to rethink global public health financing.

Matthew Kavanagh, director of Georgetown University's Center for Global Health Policy and Politics, pointed out that the US spends less than 1% of its health budget on WHO but gains essential benefits, including intelligence on global disease outbreaks and access to virus samples for vaccine development.

WHO emergencies chief Dr Michael Ryan acknowledged the gravity of the situation, describing the US exit as "terrible." However, he told member nations that they have the "tremendous capacity" to compensate for the funding gap.

Ryan further noted, "The US is leaving a community of nations. It's essentially breaking up with you."

Kavanagh expressed doubt that the US could replicate WHO's extensive global disease monitoring and warned that the withdrawal would likely lead to poorer health outcomes for Americans.

"How much worse remains to be seen," he said.