US Health Secretary: WHO is dying, I invite others to leave it

The US Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., called the World Health Organization (WHO) an institution "bureaucratically bloated" and "in its final throes."

Kennedy said this in a video message shown to health officials who gathered today at the organization's annual assembly in Geneva.

Although the United States is the UN agency's main donor, its representatives announced their withdrawal from the organization on the first day Donald Trump took office as US president, leaving the WHO with a huge budget shortfall, which member states are trying to address this week through reforms.

"I call on health ministers from around the world and the WHO to understand our withdrawal from the organization as a wake-up call," he said in a video recorded for Fox News, which was later broadcast at the assembly in Geneva.

"We are already in contact with like-minded countries and we encourage others to consider the opportunity to join our initiative," he added.

His speech did not elicit any reaction from the assembly members. Diplomats and ministers mostly followed the speech in silence. /Telegraph/

Like many legacy institutions, the WHO has become mired in bureaucratic bloat, entrenched paradigms, conflicts of interest, and international power politics. While the United States has provided the lion's share of the organization's funding historically, other countries such as... pic.twitter.com/VvWbVBkb6M

— Secretary Kennedy (@SecKennedy) May 20, 2025