The World Health Organization (WHO) is revising its International Health Regulations (IHR) after the COVID-19 pandemic.
More than 300 amendments to the IHR are under consideration by 196 states. Delegates wrapped up their third session in April and plan to have three more this year—in July, October, and December—before presenting the changes to the World Health Assembly in May 2024. After all revisions have been agreed upon, the goal is to adopt a WHO “pandemic treaty” that will guide the global response to the next outbreak of a highly infectious disease.
The WHO stated the proposals under examination are “amendments related to public health response, core capacities for surveillance and response, collaboration, and assistance, as well as six newly proposed articles and one new Annex,” in a press release.
“COVID showed the world how vulnerable we all are and what needed fixing in the global health architecture if we are to be better prepared for the next big event,” Ashley Bloomfield, former Director-General of Health New Zealand and Co-Chair of the IHR Working Group, said in the press release.
Pandemic Accord or Treaty?
Parallel to the process of amending the IHR, governments are also negotiating a WHO document on pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response, also referred to as a pandemic accord.
The prospect of WHO overseeing the drafting and adoption of a pandemic treaty has raised questions about the extent to which member countries will be obligated to abide by the document’s terms. The WHO could adopt a pandemic accord that would not have to be ratified by WHO member states to minimize political controversies.
This was the model used by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in adopting the Paris Climate Accords in December 2015. The climate pact was non-binding and had no enforcement mechanism but has been used by its supporters to guide signatories’ climate policies.
Failed Pandemic Response
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) denies that WHO regulations or agreements could override domestic officials.
“It is false to claim that the World Health Organization has now, or will have by virtue of these activities, any authority to direct U.S. health policy or national emergency health response actions,” HHS said in a statement provided to the Associated Press. “The WHO has no such enforcement mechanisms, and its non-binding recommendations to member states are just that: non-binding. Any associated actions at the national level will remain reserved to sovereign states, including the United States.”
The WHO’s performance during the pandemic is ample reason not to entrust it with new responsibilities, says Jeff Stier, a senior fellow at the Consumers Choice Center, an advocacy group.
“It is imperative that we learn the lessons from WHO’s failed response to COVID-19,” said Stier. “When an institution riddled with corruption fails its biggest test, we should be decreasing funding and authority. Yet WHO, so detached from reality, demands more of each. The United States must become responsible donors by immediately demanding reform.”
Failed to Confront China
The WHO came under widespread criticism for failing to confront the Chinese government regarding its claims about the coronavirus.
“Preliminary investigations conducted by the Chinese authorities found no clear evidence of human-to-human transmission of the novel #coronavirus (2019-nCoV) identified in #Wuhan, #China,” the WHO posted on Twitter on January 14, 2020.
An investigation launched by WHO into the origins of the coronavirus, including a possible lab leak at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, failed to reach any definitive conclusions after Chinese authorities refused to cooperate.
Biden Stopped Trump’s Withdrawal
The public should be skeptical of any role the WHO plays in the global health arena, says Jane Orient, M.D., executive director of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons and president of Doctors for Disaster Preparedness.
“WHO’s disastrous response to the COVID-19 affair should disqualify it from serving as an authoritative source of advice,” said Orient. “It is highly politicized, corrupt, and riddled with incompetence. The United States should withdraw.”
President Donald Trump stopped funding the WHO and began the process of withdrawing from the group on July 6, 2020. President Joe Biden rescinded Trump’s executive order on his first day in office.
Bonner Russell Cohen, Ph. D. (bcohen@nationalcenter.org) is a senior fellow at the National Center for Public Policy Research.