The United States on Thursday officially completed its exit from the World Health Organization, bringing to a close its relationship with the UN health body one year after President Donald Trump ordered the withdrawal.
With the departure now final, the US has ended all involvement with the agency, but reports from Bloomberg and Reuters say it leaves behind unpaid dues estimated at around $260 million. The US Department of Health and Human Services confirmed that all funding to the WHO has been cut and that American personnel have been recalled from the organisation’s headquarters and offices around the world. Washington has also withdrawn from WHO leadership bodies, technical panels and working groups.
The decision stems from an executive order Trump signed on the first day of his second term, in which he accused the WHO of mishandling the Covid pandemic, failing to implement reforms and lacking independence from political influence.
Dispute over unpaid dues
An administration official said on Thursday that the United States was not required to clear its outstanding payments before leaving. A senior HHS official told reporters there is no legal obligation to settle dues prior to withdrawal, even though a 1948 congressional resolution requires a year’s notice and payment of contributions.
Despite the formal exit, the US has not paid its dues for 2024 and 2025. The WHO has stated that Washington owed roughly $260 million as of January 2025, though an Associated Press report, citing a WHO official, put the figure at more than $130 million.
WHO loses its biggest funder
The withdrawal removes the WHO’s largest donor. Bloomberg reported that between 2022 and 2023, the United States contributed close to $1.3 billion to the organisation. Lawrence Gostin, director of the WHO Collaborating Center on National and Global Health Law at Georgetown University, described the situation as “a very messy divorce.”
Gostin warned that the move would weaken global responses to future outbreaks and limit the ability of US scientists and pharmaceutical companies to develop vaccines and treatments for emerging threats. He called it the most damaging presidential decision of his lifetime.
Global health impact
The WHO is the United Nations’ specialised health agency responsible for coordinating responses to international health emergencies, providing technical assistance to poorer countries, distributing vaccines and treatments, and setting global health standards. Nearly every country in the world is a member.
Experts warn that the US withdrawal could severely disrupt efforts ranging from polio eradication to maternal and child health programmes and research on emerging viruses. Dr Ronald Nahass, president of the Infectious Diseases Society of America, described the decision as “shortsighted and misguided” and “scientifically reckless.”
By stepping away from WHO committees and technical groups, the US has also lost access to critical global influenza data, which plays a key role in shaping vaccine development and enabling rapid responses to outbreaks.
