The same could happen if the US withdraws from the WHO

McKee believes the loss of funding will also affect efforts to eradicate polio, and to control outbreaks of Mpox in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda and Burundi, which continue to be reported. Hundreds of cases per week. He pointed out that the virus “has the potential to spread, including in the US.”

Worried about the potential for Moss Outbreaks of vaccine preventable diseases. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, is a prominent anti-vaccine advocate, and Moss is concerned about possible changes to vaccination-based health policies in the US. That, with the WHO’s ability to control the outbreak weakening, could be a “double whammy” as the disease erupts in the US, he says. “We are setting ourselves up for a major measles outbreak in the United States,” he says.

At the same time, the US is against Another growing threat to public health: Circulation of bird flu on poultry and dairy farms. The US has seen an outbreak of the H5N1 virus on poultry farms In 51 statesand the US According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the virus has been found in 928 dairy herds in 16 states. 67 human cases have been reported in the US, and one person has died. While we do not yet have evidence that the virus can spread between people, The US and other countries are preparing for possible outbreaks.

But this preparation depends on a thorough and clear understanding of what is happening on the ground. WHO provides an important role in information sharing – countries report early signs of outbreaks to the agency, which then shares the information with its members. This type of information not only allows countries to develop strategies to limit the spread of disease, but also allows them to share the genetic sequence of viruses and develop vaccines. Member states need to know what is happening in the US and the US needs to know what is happening globally. “Both of those channels of communication will be blocked,” says Moss.

As if all that wasn’t enough, the US But it suffers in terms of its reputation as a leader in global public health. “By telling the world: ‘We don’t care about your health’, it sends a message that is likely to reflect badly on it,” says McKee. “It’s a classic lose-lose situation,” he adds.

“It will harm global health,” says Moss. “It will come back to bite us.”