The Trump administration has restricted senior US health officials from directly communicating with the World Health Organisation (WHO) during the global response to the Ebola outbreak, according to documents and sources cited by CNN. The directive bars individuals at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) from speaking with the WHO, effectively sidelining them from international discussions on virus outbreaks.
Details of the restrictions
The federal health sub-agency, which previously developed treatments for HIV/AIDS and Covid-19 under Dr. Anthony Fauci, was prohibited from engaging with the WHO during the recent hantavirus outbreak. Communication limits have been slightly relaxed following the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. However, NIAID officials can now attend virtual WHO meetings only in small groups of no more than three and solely in a “listening capacity,” according to a May 18 email from a senior NIAID official.
Follow-up discussions must be conducted through NIAID’s parent agency, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The email stated: “We’ll be operating in the same manner for Ebola as we have been doing for Hantavirus, assembling a small group of experts — no more than three — to participate. Should we have legitimate research questions or countermeasure testing ideas, we can bring those up through the proper chain of command.”
Impact on public health response
Current and former health officials said the limits stifle quick collaboration with international counterparts, with one source calling the restrictions unprecedented during a US response to emerging public health emergencies. The measures are part of broader Trump administration efforts to retreat from global health initiatives, following the president’s order for the US to withdraw from the WHO in January.
Many US health agencies are currently operating with interim heads or vacant positions, including the director of NIAID, the surgeon general, the head of the Food and Drug Administration, the deputy health secretary, and the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
An HHS spokesperson defended the approach, stating that the department “engages with the WHO to support information sharing and coordination during infectious disease outbreaks” through the CDC, which is present on the ground. The spokesperson added: “Teams across the Department coordinate on key response areas, including contact tracing, diagnostics, and medical countermeasures, to avoid duplication and reduce confusion in outbreak response efforts.”
