United States formally exits World Health Organization after one-year notice

The United States formally leaves the World Health Organization today, concluding a one-year withdrawal process that began when Washington notified the United Nations of its intent on 22 January 2025. Under WHO rules and U.S. law, a one-year notice was required for withdrawal and any outstanding assessed contributions must be settled before departure.

WHO records show differing totals for unpaid assessed contributions for the 2024–2025 period, with figures ranging from roughly $260 million to $278 million. The United States has been the agency’s largest single financial backer, contributing about 18 percent of the WHO’s assessed budget; China is listed as the second largest contributor, at about $181 million. The loss of U.S. support has triggered a fiscal shock at the agency, forcing a reduction in senior management and prompting plans for staff cuts and scaled-back programs through mid-2026.

WHO leaders have warned that the departure will affect the agency’s ability to pursue major global health priorities, including pandemic preparedness and responses to tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS and other infectious disease threats. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged Washington to reconsider, saying, “I hope the U.S. will reconsider and rejoin WHO,” and characterizing the withdrawal as “a lose for the United States, and it’s a lose for the rest of the world.”

The withdrawal was set in motion by an executive order signed by President Donald Trump on his first day in office in 2025, and the administration has taken additional measures during the intervening year. U.S. officials ordered a pause on future transfers of federal funds, recalled U.S. personnel assigned to WHO work, and instructed them to stop participating in negotiations on a proposed WHO-led global pandemic treaty. Philanthropist Bill Gates said he does not expect the United States to rejoin the WHO in the near term.

Legal and public health experts cautioned about the consequences. Lawrence O. Gostin, founding director of the O’Neill Institute for Global Health Law at Georgetown University, called the action “a clear violation of U.S. law.” Kelly Henning of Bloomberg Philanthropies warned the move “could weaken the systems and collaborations the world relies on to detect, prevent and respond to health threats.”

WHO member states are scheduled to address the practical and governance ramifications at the agency’s executive board meeting in February 2026, where officials will consider how cooperation, data sharing and outbreak response should proceed without formal U.S. participation. Agency staff and global health partners must now navigate how to maintain surveillance networks, vaccine distribution channels and technical collaborations that have depended on U.S. funding and personnel.

The departure marks a substantial shift in global health governance at a time when many experts say sustained international coordination remains critical. How quickly the United States and the WHO might restore formal ties, and how the agency will fill the fiscal and operational gap left by the United States, are likely to be central questions at the executive board session next month.