Trump Administration Executive Actions on U.S. Global Health

The United States government has fundamentally restructured its approach to global health through a series of executive actions initiated by the Trump administration since January 21, 2025. These measures include the formal withdrawal of the U.S. From the World Health Organization (WHO) and the rescission of previous policies regarding global health security.

Withdrawal from the World Health Organization

On January 20, 2025, President Trump signed Executive Order 14155, which initiated the formal process for the United States to withdraw from the World Health Organization. Following a required one-year notice period, the United States government formally exited the organization on January 22, 2026.

According to a Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) fact sheet, the decision was based on the WHO’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic in Wuhan, China, as well as a perceived lack of independence, transparency and accountability, and a failure to implement reforms.

The withdrawal resulted in several immediate operational changes:

• All U.S. Government funding to the WHO has been terminated.
• U.S. Personnel and contractors embedded with the WHO in Geneva, Switzerland, and other worldwide offices have been recalled.
• Hundreds of U.S. Engagements with the WHO have been discontinued or suspended.
• The U.S. Has ceased official participation in WHO technical working groups, governance structures, leadership bodies, and sponsored committees.

The HHS stated that despite this withdrawal, the U.S. Intends to maintain its role as a leading authority in public health by continuing to drive health innovation, strengthening global biosecurity coordination, and ensuring the rapid detection of infectious disease outbreaks.

Rescission of Global Health Security Policies

Starting January 20, 2025, the administration issued rescissions of several Executive Orders and actions from the Biden administration. These included orders focused on global health security and the COVID-19 pandemic.

One specific action was the rescission of Executive Order 13987, which had aimed to provide a unified response to combat COVID-19 and establish U.S. Leadership on global health security. This order had previously created the National Security Council Directorate on Global Health Security and Biodefense, along with a Senior Director position to manage it.

Analysis from KFF suggests that because many of the provisions in those previous COVID-19 and global health security actions were no longer current, these rescissions are likely to have minimal effect on current government policies.

Federal Grant Oversight and Funding Pauses

The administration also implemented new controls over how federal health and research funding is distributed. On August 7, 2025, the executive order Improving Oversight of Federal Grantmaking was issued. This order requires agency heads to appoint a senior official to review discretionary grants and new funding opportunity announcements to ensure they align with national interests and agency priorities.

Earlier in the term, the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued a memo on January 27, 2025, directing federal agencies to temporarily pause activities related to the disbursement or obligation of federal financial assistance. This pause was intended to allow for the review of activities implicated by recent executive orders.

The OMB later clarified on January 28, 2025, that this pause would not apply to programs providing direct benefits to Americans, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Medicaid. The OMB subsequently rescinded the pause memo on January 29, 2025.