UN's world health body asks US to reconsider funding cuts

UPDATES WITH MORE REMARKS ON FUNDING CUTS; REVISES HEADLINE

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

GENEVA (AA) - The effect of US funding cuts to international aid is already visible and will be "greater," the World Health Organization (WHO) chief said Monday, asking Washing to reconsider its decision.

The impact of funding cuts through USAID and other agencies "will be even greater, and we are already seeing them," Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a WHO press briefing.

Tedros said that in many countries, the loss of US funding threatens reversing progress in disease control, immunization rates, maternal and child health, and emergency preparedness.

"Many of the gains" in malaria that have been made over the past 20 years are "now at risk," he said.

"There are now severe disruptions to the supply of malaria diagnostics, medicines and insecticide-treated bed nets due to stock-outs, delayed delivery, or lack of funding," he said.

Noting that the US has been the largest bilateral donor to the fight against malaria over the last two decades, he warned: "If disruptions continue, we could see an additional 15 million cases of malaria and 107,000 deaths this year alone, reversing 15 years of progress."

It is similar with AIDS, he said, explaining that the suspension of most funding to the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief caused an immediate stop to services for HIV treatment, testing, and prevention in more than 50 countries.

He said that as a result, eight countries now have substantial disruptions to antiretroviral therapy and will run out of medicines in the coming months, without naming the countries.

"Disruptions to HIV programs could undo 20 years of progress, leading to more than 10 million additional cases of HIV and 3 million HIV-related deaths – more than triple the number of deaths last year," he stressed.

On tuberculosis, according to Tedros, 27 countries in Africa and Asia are facing crippling breakdowns in their response, with shortages of human resources, disruptions to diagnosis and treatment, data and surveillance systems collapsing, and vital community engagement work deteriorating.

Nine countries have reported failing procurement and supply chains for TB drugs, he said, underlining the importance of US support for TB services which were significant over the past two decades.

Additionally, WHO's Global Measles and Rubella Network of more than 700 laboratories, which was funded solely by the US, faces an imminent shutdown, he said, adding: "This comes at the worst possible time when measles is making a comeback."

Last year, there were 57 large or disruptive measles outbreaks, and that number has been increasing for the past three years, according to the WHO.

Tedros said the sudden cuts to US funding are also affecting efforts to eradicate polio, to monitor the emergence of diseases such as bird flu, and to respond to disease outbreaks and humanitarian crises.

"Almost 24 million people living in such crises are at risk of not being able to access essential health services," he said. "More than 2,600 health facilities in 12 humanitarian crises have already suspended services at least partially, or will do very soon."

"We ask the US to reconsider its support for global health, which not only saves lives around the world, it also makes the US safer, by preventing outbreaks from spreading internationally," he said.

"If the US decides not to restore direct funding to countries, we ask it to engage in dialogue with affected countries so plans can be made to transition from reliance on US funding to more sustainable solutions, without disruptions that cost lives," the WHO chief said.

He also said that no matter whether the US funding returns or not, other states need to step up and progressively increase domestic health spending, calling it "now more important than ever."

- Emergencies program faces 25% budget cut

The agency is also preparing for significant budget reductions, with its Health Emergencies Program set to contract by up to 25%, Executive Director Michael Ryan told the briefing.

Ryan said Tedros has instructed the organization to scale down its budget ambitions already due to funding cuts. The budget for the next biennium, originally set at $1.2 billion, has already been reduced to $872 million, with $60 million in cost containment measures implemented.

"Now we're looking at bridging financing to get us to next year," he said, warning that the cuts will force WHO to make difficult decisions about which programs to prioritize.

"Do you want to stop doing Ebola? Do you want to stop emergency medical teams from responding to major disasters? There's some terrible choices to be made … choices we would never have wanted to make,” he said.

Despite the budget constraints, Ryan stressed that the WHO will continue to operate efficiently and remain prepared for future growth.

On encouraging developments, Tedros welcomed Tanzania's recent declaration that the Marburg outbreak is over. Although 10 people died in the outbreak, "it could have been much worse," he said.

Additionally, he said, no new cases of Ebola have been reported since March 2 in Uganda, and there are no patients currently in care.

He also mentioned Burundi becoming the 18th country to roll out malaria vaccines in its childhood immunization program. According to the WHO, the first phase includes 25 districts with the highest malaria burden.