The World Health Organization's closeness to China and the issue of whether the United Nations-affiliated institution helped that county hide the threat of coronavirus led to a sharp response from House Republicans this week.
Freshman Rep. Guy Reschenthaler, R.-Pa., offered a resolution to defund U.S. support for WHO until its Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus resigns.
"The WHO helped the Chinese Communist Party hide the threat of COVID-19 from the world," charged Reschenthaler. "The United States is the largest contributor to WHO. It's not right that Americans' hard-earned tax dollars are being used to propagate China's lies and hide information that could have saved lives."
The Reschenthaler resolution also calls for an international commission to investigate how much WHO was involved with the Chinese in hiding just how serious COVID-19 was.
Reschenthaler and the 20 other Republican House members who support the bill already have an ally in President Donald Trump. Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Trump stunned listeners by saying, "we're going to put a hold on money [sent] to WHO." He added that the agency "seemed to be very China-centric."
The ending of U.S. dollars for the WHO would severely damage its operations. During its most recent two-year funding period, the U.S. has provided the agency with $893 million — including $236 million in dues — and is therefore its largest contributor.
The Reschenthaler resolution also calls for an international commission to investigate the origins of the coronavirus in China and the ways its government tried to underreport and even cover up the extent of the virus' deadly nature. More than 100,000 people worldwide have died due to the virus.
John Gizzi is chief political columnist and White House correspondent for Newsmax. For more of his reports, Go Here Now.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.