Fauci announces US will remain a member of the WHO
The United States will remain a member of the World Health Organization, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, announced Thursday.
Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, made the announcement via video link to the WHO's executive board in Geneva, a day after Joe Biden was sworn-in as the 46th president of the U.S.
"I am honored to announce the United States will remain a member of the World Health Organization," Fauci told the board Thursday, adding that the U.S. will also "fulfil its financial obligations" to the WHO and stop reducing its staff at the United Nations agency..
![PHOTO: Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, speaks via video link during a meeting with the World Health Organization's executive board in Geneva, Switzerland, on Jan. 21, 2021.](https://s.abcnews.com/images/Health/anthony-fauci-who-meeting-reuters-210_hpEmbed_20210121-073533_3x2_992.jpg)
Fauci, who is Biden's chief medical adviser on the coronavirus pandemic, also announced that the president will issue a directive Thursday that shows the country's intent to join the COVAX Facility, a global initiative to ensure rapid and equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines for all countries regardless of income.
Within hours of becoming president, Biden had signed an executive order reversing former President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw from the WHO. Trump had accused the organization of failing to correctly respond to the coronavirus pandemic and of allegedly giving too much power to China.