Washington/Geneva/Beijing (Agencies) July 19, 2025: The United States has formally rejected the 2024 amendments to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) International Health Regulations (IHR), sparking international concern over the future of global pandemic preparedness and cooperation.
In a joint statement issued Friday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced the rejection, arguing that the amendments “expand the role of the WHO in public health emergencies” and risk infringing on U.S. sovereignty. The officials criticized the language of the amendments as “vague and broad,” claiming it could lead to politically driven responses rather than rapid and effective action.
The amendments, adopted by consensus in Geneva in May 2024 after three years of negotiations, aim to improve global access to vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics during future pandemics. They include a provision requiring manufacturers to allocate 20% of pandemic-related medical supplies to the WHO to ensure equitable distribution to low-income countries.
Despite U.S. claims, international legal experts and WHO representatives have emphasized that the amendments do not override national sovereignty, and that health policy remains under the jurisdiction of individual governments. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus expressed regret over the U.S. decision, reaffirming that the organization cannot impose quarantines or mandates on member states.
The move follows President Donald Trump’s renewed withdrawal process from the WHO, initiated in January 2025. The U.S. absence from the May 2025 pandemic treaty further isolates Washington from global health governance frameworks.
Chinese scholar Lü Xiang, from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, warned that the U.S. rejection could disrupt international epidemiological data sharing and weaken its own pandemic preparedness. “This self-inflicted isolation would significantly diminish its capacity to respond to future health crises,” Lü told Global Times.
Countries had until July 19 to lodge formal reservations to the IHR amendments. While most WHO member states have endorsed the reforms, conservative activists in the U.S., UK, and Australia have campaigned against them, citing concerns over vaccine mandates and digital health documentation.
The rejection underscores growing tensions between national sovereignty and multilateral cooperation in global health, raising questions about the effectiveness of future pandemic responses in an increasingly fragmented international landscape.