As the U.S. bids adieu to the World Health Organization, California says hello

Photo: Gavin Newsom, Governor of California, at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2026 in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland – January 22, 2026. Photo credit: © World Economic Forum / Valeriano Di Domenico via Flickr. CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 (no modifications). Article by Gabrielle Emanuel. NPR – January 28, 2026.

At 5 a.m. California time, when it is still dark outside, a member of the state’s Department of Public Health gets on a weekly call. The topic? Health emergencies all over the world. For years, the U.S. federal government participated in these calls, which are organized by the World Health Organization. Now — as the Trump Administration says it has withdrawn from WHO over its handling of COVID, among other things — California is stepping in. […]

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