On Jan. 23, 2026, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. posted a video on X announcing that the U.S. had formally completed its withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO). Weirdly enough, he framed the decision as a move to “reclaim our independence.”
The Thursday move finalized a process initiated nearly a year earlier by President Donald Trump. Under WHO rules, a member state’s exit requires a one-year notice period, which the Trump administration triggered in early 2025. On Jan. 22, 2026, the U.S. government formally notified the WHO that the withdrawal process had concluded, ending U.S. funding, personnel participation, and governance involvement.
