Last year, President Donald Trump issued an order to withdraw from the global health body, charging it with mismanagement and political bias
According to media reports based on WHO’s calculations, the US has completed its withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO), but it still owes the agency approximately $260 million in unpaid membership fees.
Washington had long been one of WHO’s largest contributors, but US President Donald Trump became openly antagonistic toward the organization after the Covid-19 pandemic, claiming it was mismanaged and politically biased. He first initiated the US withdrawal in 2020, but Joe Biden reversed the move in 2021. Last year – on his first day back in office – Trump issued a new executive order to pull the US out of the body.
Under a 1948 resolution authorizing US membership in WHO, Washington must give one year’s notice and settle outstanding obligations before withdrawing. Although the notice requirement has been met, formally ending US membership this week, WHO stated in January last year that Washington had failed to pay dues for the 2024-2025 budget cycle, totaling about $260.6 million. Bloomberg and CNN reported on Thursday that the fees remain unpaid after Trump’s order halted all US transactions with the body.
Senior US officials told Bloomberg that there is no statutory requirement to clear the debt before finalizing the withdrawal, and that [WHO] lacks tools to enforce it, although legal experts have disputed this.
“Legally, it’s very clear that the US cannot officially withdraw from WHO unless it pays its outstanding financial obligations. But WHO has no power to force the US to pay,” Lawrence Gostin, head of Georgetown University’s WHO-collaborating center on global health law, told CNN. “It’s a very messy divorce.”
Reports state that WHO could pass a resolution blocking the US exit until dues are paid. The agency is expected to discuss legal options at its World Health Assembly in May 2026.
The US exiting WHO is part of a broader retreat from international bodies that it claims no longer serve American interests. In July, Washington announced its withdrawal from UNESCO over alleged anti-Israel bias, and last month, Trump ordered withdrawal from 66 more organizations and commissions deemed to operate against US national interests or sovereignty, including major UN forums on climate, migration, and social policy. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has pledged continued review of Washington’s remaining international commitments.