“During COVID, the WHO failed at its core job of demanding transparency, confronting early misinformation, and protecting the world from politicized science. Instead, it amplified government talking points, silenced legitimate scientific dissent, and punished doctors who asked reasonable questions.” – Dr. Joseph Varon
The Independent Medical Alliance (IMA), a national network of independent physicians, healthcare professionals, and medical researchers, today responded to two major policy announcements from the Department of Health and Human Services and the White House that signal a decisive shift in U.S. healthcare governance and ethics.
The White House confirmed Thursday that the United States has formally withdrawn from the World Health Organization, completing a process announced by President Trump last year. The move reflects growing concern among U.S. policymakers and medical professionals about the WHO’s insistence on controlling patient healthcare choices.
“The United States should not be funding or legitimizing an organization that no longer tolerates open scientific debate or accountability,” said Dr. Joseph Varon, President and Chief Medical Officer of the Independent Medical Alliance.
“The WHO has steadily drifted away from its original mission of impartial, science-driven global health and toward political accommodation, bureaucratic inertia, and narrative enforcement,” continued Dr. Varon. “During COVID, it failed at the job that mattered most: demanding transparency, confronting early misinformation, and protecting the world from politicized science. Global cooperation in health matters—but cooperation without integrity is dangerous. Walking away from a broken system is sometimes the only way to force reform.”
HHS also announced Thursday a new policy ending the use of human fetal tissue in research supported by the National Institutes of Health. The practice, which had been restricted during President Trump’s first term, was reinstated under the Biden Administration. The new policy restores federal limits on research involving tissue derived from elective abortions.
“There is no ethical justification for performing experiments on tissue derived from aborted human beings,” added Dr. Varon. “The fact this practice continued for years within federally funded research institutions shows just how far removed parts of HHS had become from foundational medical ethics. This correction is long overdue.”
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