Ooh, that’s a big one,” Donald Trump said Monday as he signed an executive order – one of dozens during his first hours as president – to withdraw the United States from the World Health Organization.

WHO’s constitution, drafted in New York, doesn’t have a clear exit method for member states. A joint resolution by Congress in 1948 outlined that the U.S. can withdraw with one year's notice. This is contingent, however, on ensuring that its financial obligations to WHO “shall be met in full for the organization’s current fiscal year.”

The U.S. has traditionally been the most generous benefactor of the WHO. A Trump executive order to cut ties with the WHO could pose a threat to global public health.

More than half of Americans believe the U.S. benefits from its membership in the WHO. As of April 2024, 25% of U.S. adults say the country benefits a great deal from its membership, while about one third say it benefits a fair amount. Conversely, 38% say the U.S. does not benefit much or at all from WHO membership.

Public health experts say U.S. withdrawal from the W.H.O. would undermine the nation’s standing as a global health leader and make it harder to fight the next pandemic.

Public health experts say the United States’ departure could cripple the WHO’s operations or leave an opening for China to assume greater control over the agency.

The United States will leave the World Health Organization, President Donald Trump said on Monday, saying the global health agency had mishandled the COVID-19 pandemic and other international health crises.

We’ve heard about the threat that United ... global health. On his first day in office, President Donald Trump tabled several dozen executive orders, among them a stunning directive to re-initiate the American withdrawal from the World Health ...

World Health Organization chief says agency already cutting back on hiring and travel with Trump withdrawal set to hit funding.

President Trump’s decision to pull out of the international health agency could deprive the United States of crucial scientific data and lessen the country’s influence in setting a global health agenda.

WHO plays a unique role in global health, which may complicate the Trump administration's ability to replicate the agency's activities.