The date for the U.S. to exit the World Health Organization has arrived, but the timeline for the completion of the withdrawal remains unclear.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order Jan. 20, 2025, to withdraw the U.S. from the WHO on Jan. 22, 2026, citing the global agency’s “mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic” and other global health crises.
The U.S. gave the required one-year notice. However, a second requirement — paying all outstanding dues — has not been met. The U.S. does not plan to pay the $278 million it owes for the 2024-25 period, NPR reported Jan. 20.
The executive order pauses the future transfer of any U.S. government funds, support or resources to the WHO, a State Department spokesperson said in a statement shared with Becker’s.
“The WHO’s failure to contain, manage, and share information with the global community cost the U.S. Economy between $14 [trillion] and $16 trillion dollars,” the spokesperson said. “The American people have paid more than enough to this organization, and this economic hit is beyond a down payment on any financial obligations to the organization.”
The WHO’s constitution includes no formal withdrawal clause. However, the U.S. joined the organization via a joint resolution of Congress in 1948 and established an arrangement for withdrawal, according to NPR.
The WHO, which includes 193 other member countries, will determine the validity and timing of the U.S. exit. The matter will be discussed at the WHO executive board meeting in late February and again in May at the World Health Assembly, Steven Solomon, WHO’s principal legal officer, told NPR.
President Trump previously initiated withdrawal from the WHO in 2020 during his first term, but the action was reversed by former President Joe Biden’s administration.
