US exit from the World Health Organization marks a new era in global health policy – here’s what the US, and world, will lose

The U.S.-WHO collaboration has been critical in the country's response to mpox, shown here, as well as Ebola, Marburg, flu and COVID-19. Uma Shankar sharma/Moment via Getty Images

The U.S. departure from the World Health Organization became official in late January 2026, according to the Trump administration – a year after President Donald Trump signed an executive order on inauguration day of his second term declaring that he was doing so. He first stated his intention to do so during his first term in 2020, early in the COVID-19 pandemic.

The U.S. severing its ties with the WHO will cause ripple effects that linger for years to come, with widespread implications for public health. The Conversation asked Jordan Miller, a public health professor at Arizona State University, to explain what the U.S. departure means in the short and long term.