GHealth News – The United States has released a new “America First Global Health Strategy,” signaling a major shift in how it approaches international health assistance and global disease prevention.
According to reporting by CNN, the strategy moves away from long-standing U.S. reliance on multilateral institutions, international NGOs, and traditional aid mechanisms, instead emphasizing direct bilateral agreements with individual countries. Under the plan, recipient governments would be expected to take greater financial and operational responsibility for their own health systems, with U.S. funding tied to specific benchmarks and co-investment requirements.
The strategy prioritizes spending on frontline health needs, such as medicines and health workers, while sharply reducing support for technical assistance, system-building programs, and international partnerships. Administration officials argue the approach promotes self-reliance, reduces dependency on U.S. aid, and ensures American taxpayer dollars are spent more efficiently.
However, global health experts and aid organizations have warned the strategy carries significant risks. Critics argue that many low-income and fragile countries lack the infrastructure and workforce capacity to absorb such changes quickly, potentially weakening health systems and disrupting programs focused on HIV, tuberculosis, maternal health, and outbreak preparedness. There are also concerns that scaling back multilateral cooperation could undermine global efforts to prevent and respond to future pandemics.
The strategy comes amid broader reductions to U.S. foreign assistance and structural changes affecting agencies such as USAID, raising questions about the future of U.S. leadership in global health.
As the policy begins to take shape, global health leaders will be closely watching how these changes affect vulnerable populations, and whether the shift toward bilateralism delivers the resilience and sustainability the administration promises.
(CNN)