FIRST ON FOX: A group of Republicans in the House of Representatives are calling for a complete freeze on U.S. funding for the World Health Organisation (WHO).
Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, policy chairman of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, introduced the bill Tuesday, arguing that the international health agency “does not serve our interests and does not deserve our money.”
He also attacked current efforts by WHO member states to draw up an international pandemic preparedness treaty, accusing the organization of trying to consolidate and increase its own influence.
“Taking money from hardworking families struggling with the aftermath of Biden’s inflation crisis and sending it to a bunch of left-wing ‘public health’ tyrants in Geneva is unacceptable,” Roy told Fox News Digital.
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Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), ((Salvatore Di Nolfi/Keystone via AP))
“I am confident that President Trump will end funding for the WHO – as he did last time – but this legislation will ensure that no future administration can restart it.”
At least a dozen GOP lawmakers support the bill.
A significant number of Republicans, including President-elect Donald Trump, have been critical of the WHO, especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, is seen outside the U.S. Capitol following the final votes before the August recess on Thursday, July 25, 2024. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
Trump announced that he was ending funding to the WHO during his first term in April 2020, a move that drew backlash from the U.S. medical community, Politico reported at the time.
“Fighting a global pandemic requires international cooperation and reliance on science and data,” said Patrice Harris, president of the American Medical Association. the outlet told us.
Conservatives in Congress, however, have seen the organization as a power-hungry group with no regard for American interests.
According to World Population Review, the US is currently the largest contributor to the WHO. The organization’s website states that 60% of its funding comes from member states.
Roy’s “No Taxpayer Funding for the World Health Organization Act” would end all contributions to the WHO, both committed and other voluntary funding.
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A WHO spokesperson said the organization was focused on maintaining its relationship with the US when approached for comment on Roy’s bill.
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“WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a press conference in December that the new US administration has not yet taken office and that it will need time, like any new administration, to do so. As Dr. Tedros said: WHO will do everything we can to work with the new US administration to continue strengthening global health,” the spokesperson said.
“I would add that the WHO-US partnership, and America’s contribution to global health more broadly, has protected and saved millions of lives in America and around the world. WHO deeply values its relationship with the US and is committed to maintaining and strengthening its relations with the US. It.”
