Republican governors oppose giving authority to WHO in their states, tell Biden
Two dozen Republican governors are voicing their concerns over the World Health Organization (WHO) potentially gaining excessive authority in the event of a global pandemic. They recently sent a letter to President Biden expressing their worries about two proposed agreements that would grant WHO unprecedented power within the United States.
The Republican Governors Association described the proposals as granting the WHO the ability to transition from an advisory body to a global authority in public health. This would mean that the WHO’s Director-General could unilaterally declare a ‘public health emergency of international concern’ in member nations, extending beyond pandemics to cover a variety of perceived emergencies.
According to the letter, the two proposals under discussion aim to amend the WHO’s International Health Regulations and establish a new “Pandemic Agreement” Treaty. The governors raised concerns over a potential global surveillance infrastructure being set up and member states being required to censor speech related to public health, which could potentially facilitate the creation of biological weapons.
Govs. Ron DeSantis of Florida, Kay Ivey of Alabama, Mike Dunleavy of Alaska, Eric Holcomb of Indiana, Kristi Noem of South Dakota, Bill Lee of Tennessee, Jim Justice of West Virginia, and Gov. Kim Reynolds of Iowa are among the signatories of the letter. Additionally, governors from Texas, Georgia, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Utah, Virginia, and Wyoming also added their names to the letter.
The governors emphasized in the letter that the proposed WHO agreement would significantly alter the way governors could respond to health emergencies within their states.
Recently, Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., rallied the entire Republican Senate conference to urge President Biden to reject any agreements that would expand the WHO’s authority in the case of a global pandemic.
The World Health Assembly (WHA) is scheduled to take place from May 27 to June 1, during which international agreements will be deliberated. The WHA serves as the WHO’s decision-making body, convening annually to set objectives and formulate policies among its 194 member states.
Although Biden’s administration has pledged to enhance global coordination to combat pandemics, it has also criticized aspects of the WHO’s potential treaty. Specifically, officials have expressed reservations about agreements that do not adequately protect pharmaceutical companies’ patents, as reported by Politico in January.
Overall, the concerns raised by the Republican governors and senators highlight the importance of maintaining a balance between global cooperation in public health emergencies and ensuring that individual state and national sovereignty are not compromised.
