The US President, Donald Trump, signed an executive order on the withdrawal of the US from WHO as soon as he was sworn into office for his second term.
This is part of the executive orders he has signed following his swearing-in to office on Monday. President Trump has repeatedly criticised the WHO over the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Scientists and Public Health Experts have however raised their concern that President Trump’s decision to pull out of WHO might cause some implications for Public Health worldwide.
In his speech at the White House, after he had taken his oath of office, Trump stated that the WHO has ‘ripped us up’. He noted that the United States has been the largest donor to the Geneva-based organisation, providing financial support to the WHO over the years.
In response, the WHO has expressed regret over the President’s announcement. In their statement, “We hope the United States will reconsider and we look forward to engaging in constructive dialogue to maintain the partnership between the USA and WHO, for the benefit of the health and well-being of millions of people around the globe,” they said.
They added that it might affect the global health agency’s day-to-day operations, stating that WHO programmes and interventions with other countries might be affected. Lawrence Gostin, a public health law professor at Georgetown University said that the US withdrawal from WHO is the “most momentous”.
Recall that President Trump attempted to withdraw from the WHO, in 2020, during the pandemic and towards the end of the first term.