The State Department outlined a new plan Thursday to move from global health aid to fostering the self-reliance of countries the U.S. has supported in prior years.
The U.S. will focus on working directly with nations, requiring them to co-invest in global health initiatives in order to tackle diseases such as tuberculosis, polio and HIV/AIDS as part of a new strategy from President Trump’s administration.
As part of co-investments, recipient governments will have to meet “performance benchmarks” in order for more U.S. foreign health assistance to be released, according to the State Department.
The U.S. is looking to complete bilateral deals with countries getting the majority of the health foreign aid by the end of this year, with the goal of ushering in the new agreements by April 2026.
“Our global health foreign assistance program is not just aid – it is a strategic mechanism to further our bilateral interests around the world. Moving forward, we will utilize our health foreign assistance to advance U.S. priorities and move countries toward resilient and durable local health systems,” the State Department said on Thursday.
“We will do this by entering multi-year bilateral agreements with recipient countries that lay out clear goals and action plans,” the department added.
The new “America First Global Health Strategy” is built on three pillars: making Americans safer, stronger and more prosperous.
“These bilateral agreements will ensure that both 100 percent of frontline commodity purchases and frontline healthcare workers will continue to be funded during the agreement period. We will partner with each country to ensure there are data systems in place that can both monitor potential outbreaks and broader health outcomes,” the State Department said. “We will also work to rapidly transition technical assistance to support governments in taking over key functions rather than individual clinical sites.”
The rollout of the new plan comes after the administration effectively dismantled the United States Agency for International Development earlier this year, as the U.S. drew back disbursement of international aid.
The State Department argues U.S. global health programs have become “inefficient and wasteful,” leading to a “culture of dependency among recipient countries.”
“When there is an outbreak, we will be prepared to work with local governments to respond promptly,” the department said on Thursday. “When necessary, we will be prepared to surge resources to ensure the outbreak is contained, travelers are appropriately screened, and – to the maximum extent possible – the outbreak does not reach American shores or harm Americans living abroad.”
