US has officially withdrawn from the World Health Organization, ending decades of close engagement with the UN health agency and cutting off one of its largest sources of funding.
A statement from US Department of Health and Human Services Press Office confirmed the matter.
In a statement on Friday, the US Department of Health and Human Services and the US Department of State said the decision followed what they described as the WHO’s mishandling of the pandemic that emerged from Wuhan, China. The departments said the organisation failed to act independently and did not introduce urgent reforms after the crisis.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr and Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a joint statement confirming the termination of US membership.
President Donald Trump announced the plan to leave the WHO on 20 January 2025. During the year-long withdrawal process, the United States halted funding to the organisation, withdrew all US personnel and shifted activities previously carried out with the WHO to direct bilateral engagements with other countries and organisations.
Following the exit, the US will coordinate with the WHO only in a limited manner to complete withdrawal-related procedures, the statement said.
Washington accused the WHO of delaying the declaration of a global public health emergency and a pandemic in the early stages of Covid-19, a delay it said cost the world critical weeks as the virus spread.
The statement said WHO leadership praised China’s response despite evidence of early underreporting, suppression of information and delays in confirming human-to-human transmission.
The US also accused the organisation of downplaying the risks of asymptomatic transmission and failing to promptly acknowledge airborne spread.
According to the statement, the WHO did not adopt meaningful reforms after the pandemic to address political influence, governance weaknesses or poor coordination. It said these failures reinforced concerns that politics took priority over rapid and independent public health action, weakening global trust.
The US further criticised a WHO report on the origins of Covid-19, saying it rejected the possibility of a laboratory origin despite China’s refusal to provide genetic sequences from early cases and information on activities and biosafety conditions at Wuhan laboratories.
The statement said the United States remains the world’s leading force in protecting public health and responding to infectious disease outbreaks. It said the US government will continue its global health leadership through existing and new engagements with other countries, the private sector, non-governmental organisations and faith-based entities.
US-led efforts will focus on emergency response, biosecurity coordination and health innovation, the statement added, with the stated aim of protecting Americans first while delivering benefits to partners worldwide.
The US has traditionally ranked among the WHO’s biggest donors. However, Washington has not paid its membership fees for 2024 and 2025, triggering significant job losses at the organisation. WHO lawyers estimate the unpaid arrears at about $260 million, but the US government said it sees no obligation to settle the amount.
US authorities confirmed that they have terminated all government funding to the WHO. They have also recalled US personnel and contractors from the organisation’s headquarters in Geneva and its offices worldwide. Hundreds of US engagements with the WHO now stand suspended or discontinued.
After President Trump signed the withdrawal order at the start of his second term, the WHO urged Washington to reconsider. The agency said cooperation between the WHO and the US had saved countless lives and protected people worldwide from health threats. A reversal, it added, would benefit millions across the globe.
The WHO said on Friday that the US withdrawal will feature on the agenda of its executive board meeting scheduled for 2–7 February. The organisation told the BBC that its secretariat will act in line with guidance from its governing bodies.
