Wisconsin has announced that it has joined the World Health Organization (WHO), following California and Illinois in doing so.
“Folks, public health isn’t a partisan issue, and it isn’t up for debate,” Governor Tony Evers (D) wrote on social media on Tuesday. “That’s why I’m announcing tonight that Wisconsin will join the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Global Response Network to keep our kids, our families, and our communities healthy and safe.”
Rep. Tom Tiffany (R-WI), who is running for governor in the state, said that he would “immediately remove Wisconsin from any World Health Organization network.”
“During COVID, the WHO acted as a puppet for Communist China,” he declared. “I led the fight in Congress against the WHO pandemic treaty and will always defend Wisconsin and America’s sovereignty.”
After the United States withdrew from the health entity, California rejoined its global response network. “California will not bear witness to the chaos this decision will bring,” California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) said at the time, declaring that the state will “continue to foster partnerships across the globe and remain at the forefront of public health preparedness, including through our membership as the only state in WHO’s Global Outbreak Alert & Response Network.”
Illinois also joined the network, with Governor JB Pritzker (D) claiming that the withdrawal has “undermined science and weakened our nation’s ability to detect and respond to global health threats.”
The nation’s withdrawal from the WHO aligns with President Trump’s 2025 order declaring that the WHO mishandled the COVID-19 pandemic and failed to “demonstrate independence from the inappropriate political influence of WHO member states.”
