U.S. public health officials have been told to stop working with the World Health Organization, effective immediately.
A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention official, John Nkengasong, sent a memo to senior leaders at the agency on Sunday night telling them that all agency staff who work with the WHO must immediately stop their collaborations and โawait further guidance.โ
Experts said the sudden stoppage was a surprise and would set back work on investigating and trying to stop outbreaks ofย Marburg virusย andย mpoxย in Africa, as well as brewing threats from around the world. It also comes as health authorities around the world are monitoringย bird flu outbreaksย among U.S. livestock.
The Associated Press viewed a copy of Nkengasongโs memo, which said the stop-work policy applied to โall CDC staff engaging with WHO through technical working groups, coordinating centers, advisory boards, cooperative agreements or other means โ in person or virtual.โ It also says CDC staff are not allowed to visit WHO offices.
President Trump last week issuedย an executive orderย to begin the process ofย withdrawing the U.S. from WHO, but that did not take immediate effect. Leaving WHO requires the approval of Congress and that the U.S. meets its financial obligations for the current fiscal year. The U.S. also must provide a one-year notice.
His administration also told federal health agenciesย to stop most communicationsย with the public through at least the end of the month.
โStopping communications and meetings with WHO is a big problem,โ said Dr. Jeffrey Klausner, a University of Southern California public health expert who collaborates with WHO on work against sexually transmitted infections.
โPeople thought there would be a slow withdrawal. This has really caught everyone with their pants down,โ said Klausner, who said he learned of it from someone at CDC.
โTalking to WHO is a two-way street,โ he added, noting that WHO and U.S. health officials benefit from each otherโs expertise. The collaboration allows the U.S. to learn about new tests and treatments as well as about emerging outbreaks โ information โwhich can help us protect Americans abroad and at home.โ
A U.S. health official, who was not authorized to talk about the memo and spoke on condition of anonymity, confirmed the stoppage.
A WHO spokesperson referred questions about the withdrawal to U.S. officials.
Officials at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services didnโt immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
