US Health Secretary RFK Jr. Criticizes WHO, Urges Global Exit at Geneva Assembly

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. criticized the World Health Organization (WHO) during the Seventy-Eighth World Health Assembly, describing it as a bloated and moribund institution plagued by bureaucratic inefficiency, conflicts of interest, and undue influence from countries like China. He accused the WHO of suppressing critical information about COVID-19 transmission, promoting misinformation about the virus's origins, and being overly influenced by corporate pharmaceutical interests and political agendas, such as harmful gender ideologies. Kennedy highlighted the United States' decision to fully withdraw from the WHO under the Trump administration, citing failures during the COVID-19 pandemic and the organization's lack of transparency and accountability. He called on global health ministers to create new, leaner, more transparent, and efficient health institutions free from corrupting influences, aiming for improved pandemic preparedness and a focus on chronic diseases. Kennedy's address sought to inspire a new era of global health cooperation independent of the WHO's current framework, urging nations to follow America’s lead in redefining international health governance. His remarks were delivered via a pre-recorded video and met with silence from global health officials attending the assembly.