World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has called on the United States to "reconsider" its reductions in global health funding, emphasizing the critical role such support plays in saving lives and safeguarding global security.
During a Monday briefing and while acknowledging the US's right to determine its funding priorities, Tedros stressed the need for an "orderly and humane" approach if direct support to countries is withdrawn. "We asked the US to reconsider its support for global health, which not only saves lives worldwide but also makes the US safer by preventing outbreaks from spreading internationally," he stated.
Tedros clarified that his concerns were not about the US withdrawal from the WHO but rather cuts to direct funding through agencies like USAID and the US CDC. He warned that these cuts risk "reversing 15 years of progress" in controlling diseases such as measles, polio, malaria, influenza, and HIV.
