Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
EU-Led Coalition Proposes Review Into WHO's Response But U.S. May Want More Targeted Inquiry
More than 100 countries, led by the European Union and Australia, have backed a resolution to independently review the global response to the coronavirus pandemic and the question of whether the World Health Organization acted to the best of its limited powers to contain the disease. It isn鈥檛 clear if the resolution, to be considered at a WHO summit likely on Tuesday, will be blocked by the Trump administration, which has pushed for an inquiry much more squarely targeted at China. Nor is it clear if Beijing will accept the resolution since China has opposed any inquiry that could blame the country for its failure to stop the virus when it first emerged in the central Hubei province. (Norman and Hinshaw, 5/17)
The proposal is intended to initiate 鈥渁 stepwise process of impartial, independent and comprehensive evaluation鈥 of WHO鈥檚 efforts to coordinate the international response to COVID-19, including the functioning of international health law and its actions within the greater U.N. health system. The move comes amid Australia鈥檚 call for an independent inquiry into the origins of the pandemic and WHO鈥檚 response to it 鈥 and after U.S. President Donald Trump鈥檚 repeated accusations that WHO helped China cover up the extent of the initial COVID-19 outbreak. Trump has also called for an immediate halt to all U.S. funding to the U.N. health agency. (Keaten and Cheng, 5/18)
China鈥檚 foreign ministry said on Monday it was premature to immediately launch an investigation into the origins and spread of the coronavirus that has killed more than 300,000 people globally. Spokesman Zhao Lijian told reporters during a daily briefing that the vast majority of countries in the world believe the pandemic is not yet over. The ministry said in a separate statement that President Xi Jinping will give a video speech for the opening ceremony of the World Health Assembly later on Monday. (5/18)
The World Health Organization's annual oversight convention will be held by teleconference beginning Monday, as the worst pandemic in modern history continues around the globe. The 73rd annual World Health Assembly typically brings together representatives from the WHO's 194 member states in Geneva to discuss a wide range of health topics. However, this year's meeting will be held by teleconference for the first-time ever. (Beaubien, 5/17)
In response to the global race to combat the Covid-19 pandemic, the World Health Organization embraced a proposal Friday to create a voluntary pool to collect patent rights, regulatory test data, and other information that could be shared for developing drugs, vaccines, and diagnostics. The notion was raised several weeks ago by Costa Rican officials amid mounting concern that some Covid-19 medical products may not be accessible for poorer populations. By establishing a voluntary mechanism under the auspices of the WHO, the goal is to establish a pathway that will attract numerous governments, as well as industry, universities and nonprofit organizations. (Silverman, 5/15)
President Trump is again considering cutting off funding to the World Health Organization, administration officials said, in a possible shift from a prior plan to restore partial funding to the group. Officials said the president hasn鈥檛 yet made a final decision on how to proceed, but he appeared to now be skeptical of an internal proposal to provide reduced funding to the WHO on par with what China contributes. Instead, the president is weighing extending a temporary funding halt that he put in place in April amid frustration with the WHO鈥檚 response to the coronavirus pandemic, the officials said. (Restuccia, 5/17)
A senior Chinese official appeared to confirm Secretary of State Mike Pompeo鈥檚 allegation that Beijing had told labs in the country to destroy coronavirus samples in early January but slammed his characterization as misleading. In a May 6 press briefing, Mr. Pompeo accused China of covering up the Covid-19 outbreak as it emerged in the central city of Wuhan, saying China鈥檚 National Health Commission had ordered destruction of samples of the virus on Jan. 3. (Chin, 5/16)
