Staff at the World Health Organization are 91裸聊视频渄evastated91裸聊视频� by President Donald Trump91裸聊视频檚 executive order to pull the U.S. out of the agency, a Canadian global health specialist says.
Dr. Madhukar Pai, the Canada Research Chair in Epidemiology and Global Health, is at the WHO headquarters in Geneva this week for meetings about tuberculosis and was there at the time Trump signed the order Monday.
91裸聊视频淓verything went crazy,91裸聊视频� said Pai, who is also a global health professor at McGill University in Montreal, in an interview from Geneva on Tuesday.
91裸聊视频滶verybody here is absolutely stressed, devastated, and literally freaking out because some of their programs at WHO are extremely reliant on U.S. government funding,91裸聊视频� he said.
91裸聊视频淭hey91裸聊视频檙e not even sure how to keep the lights on, keep their staff working, keep the programs going, so it91裸聊视频檚 a pretty massive crisis.91裸聊视频�
Losing the large amount of funding the U.S. provides the WHO 91裸聊视频� about 18 per cent of its budget in 2023, according to the agency 91裸聊视频� is a threat to public health, Pai said.
91裸聊视频漈here are wide-ranging impacts, I would say, to all countries, not just Canada,91裸聊视频� he said.
But Canada91裸聊视频檚 geographic proximity puts it at additional risk if its southern neighbour fails to respond appropriately to public health threats, Pai said.
91裸聊视频淚 think we91裸聊视频檒l be hit, for example, if there is a new outbreak and (the) U.S. is simply not engaged with WHO or the global response. And if that outbreak spreads within the U.S. 91裸聊视频� I think Canada will be the first one to be impacted given the movement of population between our two countries, trade and our fairly open borders.91裸聊视频�
One current threat is H5N1 avian flu 91裸聊视频� a highly pathogenic strain of influenza that has wiped out poultry farms in both Canada and the U.S., he said. Although the illness has primarily infected U.S. farm workers with mild symptoms, one senior who was exposed to a backyard flock in Louisiana died of the virus earlier this month.
Canada has had one confirmed human case of H5N1 91裸聊视频攁 teenage girl in B.C. who became severely ill and was hospitalized.
Pai is calling on the Canadian government 91裸聊视频� along with other G7 countries 91裸聊视频� to 91裸聊视频渟tep up91裸聊视频� and help fill the funding void that will be left by the U.S., both through financial contributions to the WHO as well as by taking a leadership role in global health.
But he noted Canada91裸聊视频檚 own political turmoil 91裸聊视频� including the Liberal leadership race to replace Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Trump91裸聊视频檚 threat to slap punishing tariffs on the country 91裸聊视频� could make that unlikely.
91裸聊视频淥ur leaders are probably more worried about the tariffs than they are worried about anything else at this stage,91裸聊视频� Pai said.
Dr. Prabhat Jha, founding director of the Centre for Global Health Research at Unity Health Toronto, said he would also like to see the Canadian government increase support for the WHO.
But he said the country that will hurt the most from Trump91裸聊视频檚 withdrawal is the U.S. itself.
91裸聊视频滱 lot of it is symbolism 91裸聊视频� Trump basically, you know, giving the middle finger to the world,91裸聊视频� Jha said in an interview from Sierra Leone on Tuesday.
91裸聊视频淚n the end, it91裸聊视频檚 going to hurt Americans because they lose the (health) intelligence, they lose the access to the global networks if there91裸聊视频檚 another pandemic,91裸聊视频� he said.
91裸聊视频�(The WHO) won91裸聊视频檛 share the information as easily with the U.S. as they would otherwise.91裸聊视频�
A bigger concern, Jha said, is the message the U.S. pullout 91裸聊视频渟ends about nationalism.91裸聊视频�
91裸聊视频�(It says) basically that you don91裸聊视频檛 need to have global co-operation on disease, which is absolutely stupid and completely self defeating.91裸聊视频�
Jha said the 91裸聊视频渟ilver lining91裸聊视频� of Trump91裸聊视频檚 move is that it could spark 91裸聊视频渞eform91裸聊视频� to make the WHO less dependent on the U.S.
91裸聊视频淚t means the world has to co-operate more, even if America goes it alone.91裸聊视频�
In a statement issued Tuesday, the World Health Organization said it 91裸聊视频渞egrets91裸聊视频� Trump91裸聊视频檚 decision.
91裸聊视频淲e hope the United States will reconsider and we look forward to engaging in constructive dialogue to maintain the partnership between the USA and WHO, for the benefit of the health and well-being of millions of people around the globe,91裸聊视频� it said.
Trump91裸聊视频檚 executive order claimed the U.S. was cutting ties with WHO for reasons including alleged 91裸聊视频渕ishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic91裸聊视频� and 91裸聊视频渦nfairly onerous payments.91裸聊视频�
Pai noted that the order comes as vaccine-preventable diseases are on the rise 91裸聊视频� including increasing cases of measles in both the U.S. and Canada.
In addition to losing WHO91裸聊视频檚 leadership on vaccination, he also worries about the 91裸聊视频渁nti-vaccine rhetoric91裸聊视频� from some of Trump91裸聊视频檚 picks for appointees to leadership positions, Pai said, noting increased vaccination efforts are urgently needed.
91裸聊视频滻t91裸聊视频檚 actually pretty shocking for me, stunning for me, to see that in 2025 we91裸聊视频檙e dealing with measles in Canada or (the) U.S.,91裸聊视频� he said.
91裸聊视频淲e cannot go back in time to a period where kids were getting paralyzed with polio or dying of measles and whooping cough. We had come a long, long way and we91裸聊视频檙e now starting to slip back and that91裸聊视频檚 very scary.91裸聊视频�
In an email to The Canadian Press, a spokesperson for the Public Health Agency of Canada said Canada91裸聊视频檚 membership in the WHO 91裸聊视频渁llows us to benefit from the availability of knowledge, resources and expertise from the global community.91裸聊视频�
91裸聊视频淐anada will continue working to ensure that the WHO is an effective, accountable, inclusive and well-governed institution, while maintaining our sovereignty,91裸聊视频� Anna Maddison wrote.
