Preparing the World Health Organization for the Next Health Crisis

Preparing the World Health Organization for the Next Health Crisis

The world was “profoundly impacted” by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has claimed nearly 7 million lives, said Loyce Pace, Assistant Secretary for Global Affairs at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in recent Congressional testimony. “It's only a matter of time,” she said, “before the world faces another serious public health threat.” In order to strengthen global health security against these threats, the United States is committed to working closely with the World Health Organization, or WHO.

An effective partnership with WHO is essential to “guard global health and wellbeing,” said Assistant Secretary Pace. “WHO has been on the frontlines of nearly every global health challenge over the past 75 years, combating, containing and curing some of the planet's most deadly diseases. Currently, WHO is responding to dozens of serious health emergencies, including in Gaza and in Ukraine.”

However, the COVID-19 pandemic revealed “major gaps” in global health architecture, including at WHO, said Assistant Secretary Pace.

To build up better global health infrastructure, the United States is working with partners to “ensure rapid and transparent information sharing,” and to “enhance WHO's ability to assess health threats and improve global implementation and compliance,” said Assistant Secretary Pace.

“We're advancing longstanding U.S. priorities to reinforce regional capacity and reduce risks posed by emerging infections. Ultimately, we're focused on finding sustainable solutions that break the cycle of pandemic crisis and complacency,” she said.

“The U.S. was one of 59 countries that first signed the treaty establishing a World Health Organization. Since then, we've been party to many of its successes and at the same time have pushed the organization to be better over these last 75 years,” said Assistant Secretary Pace. The United States is committed to upholding this legacy and protecting the world from the next global health threat.