A Crime Against Humanity.’ Why Trump’s WHO Funding Freeze Benefits Nobody

https://time.com/5821122/who-funding-trump-covid19-coronavirus-china/

Public health experts have savaged President Donald Trump’s decision to cut U.S. funding to the World Health Organization (WHO), which he says failed in its “basic duty” during the coronavirus pandemic by promoting “disinformation” from China.

 

The move represents another stunning turnaround for Trump, who in late February praised the WHO for “working hard and very smart,” before souring on the world body in recent days as the U.S. death toll soared. Still, it remains in line with his longstanding distrust of multilateral institutions more generally.

Critics have accused the President of attempting to shift blame away from his own torpid response to the pandemic. The WHO declared a public health emergency on Jan. 30, after which Trump continued to speak at rallies and belittle COVID-19 as “the flu.”

Critics agree the WHO’s response suffered missteps at the outset of the coronavirus outbreak. There was a focus on government information rather than non-official sources, such as whistleblowers like Dr. Li Wenliang. Officials could have investigated how many healthcare workers had become infected, which was clear evidence of human-to-human transmission before official confirmation came Jan. 23. It advised nations not to close borders.