THE agreement on the pandemicwhich aims to coordinate international cooperation during an epidemic in order to prevent the next pandemic, enjoyed significant support from the president. Joe Biden and the Democrats despite a rocky path to obtaining the support of other WHO member states.

But a new Trump administration, as well as Republicans in Congress, will likely take a more critical approach to international public health following the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic and the WHO’s failure to inform the world on the seriousness of the disease epidemic. China in January and February 2020.

“I would expect that there is no way that the pandemic agreements will get to the finish line, be ratified or accepted by the United States, which would really bring them to their knees, honestly” , Jennifer Kates, specialist in global health policies within the health system. The KFF think tank told reporters on Friday.

THE aim The aim of the Pandemic Agreement (formally known as the Agreement on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response) is to address gaps in global communication, surveillance and supply chains. supply revealed by the international community’s management of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The most controversial Some aspects of the agreement were the allocation of financial responsibilities for pandemic preparedness, including more open access to pathogen research, vaccines and antiviral treatments, which raised concerns of intellectual property among more economically developed countries.

The United States has been intimately involved in the pandemic deal negotiations since the beginning in 2021, with Kates describing the Biden administration as “very supportive” and “very engaged” in the negotiations process.

“Republicans in Congress, not so much,” Kates said.

In September, a Invoice which would require Senate ratification of “any convention or agreement on matters related to the pandemic” passed the House by a vote of 219 to 199. The bill was referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee before the election of 2024.

Kates says Republicans generally have a history of being skeptical of international agreements, especially those that could undermine state sovereignty.

Other WHO member states had similar concerns about limitations on national sovereignty in the original text of the agreement.

Although the WHO characterized sovereignty concerns due to the “torrent of fake news, misinformation and disinformation directed against the pandemic deal negotiations”, the draft deal text was updated in December 2023 to highlight that States parties would be protected by international law “to legislate”. and implement legislation in accordance with their health policies.

Even with these changes in place, disagreements among member states during what was supposed to be the final vote in May over the language and legal weight of the agreement led to the decision to postpone the final vote until May 2025.

Kates predicted that even if a new version of the pandemic deal were to pass in next year’s international voting session, it would likely not have much success without the United States participating. not, which amounts to the failure of the agreement. League of Nationsan international peace organization founded in the 1920s to prevent World War II.

The Senate is the only body of the U.S. Congress to ratify the treaties, making Republican control of that body a significant obstacle for supporters of the deal.

Relations with WHO as a whole

Although Trump said during the campaign that he had “plan ideas” for Obamacare reform, he and his team have provided few other substantive policy proposals to indicate what to expect from Obamacare policy. health of his next administration, and even less on international public health issues. .

In May 2020, Trump threatened to withdraw the United States’ membership in the WHO, as well as its funding of $400 million, approximately 15% of the organization’s operating budget. In June, Trump canceled $62 million in funding for the WHO and set the US withdrawal date for July 2021. Both decisions were quickly reversed by Biden.

Kates said she would “fully expect the Trump administration to try to do this again,” which would be even more likely with a Republican majority in both houses of Congress.

Suggesting broader reforms to the WHO and America’s relationship with the international body has also been a priority of Republicans in Congress during the Biden years.

Rep. Brad Wenstrup (R-OH), chairman of the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic, led the charge on the House side to reevaluate the relationship between the United States and the WHO in light of the organization’s role in obfuscating China’s COVID-19 policy during the early stages of the pandemic.

Wenstrup, who did not seek re-election in 2024, stressed the need for the WHO to assert greater independence from the Chinese Communist Party, which will likely remain a goal for the next Trump administration.

Although the subcommittee, as a member of the House Oversight Committee, does not have jurisdiction to introduce legislation, America’s relationship with the WHO will likely be part of the subcommittee’s final report on his investigation into the origins of the coronavirus and the politics of the pandemic era. . The report will likely be a springboard for the next legislative session.

Larry Levitt, KFF vice president for health policy, told reporters Friday that very little is known about what Trump will choose on most health policy issues in his next administration, since he and his team remained vague on the subject during the campaign.

“A lot of what we have to go by is Trump’s record in his previous term as president, as well as proposals from congressional Republicans and conservative groups,” Levitt said. “You have to read tea leaves a lot to try to anticipate what might happen.”