About 40 US lawmakers have launched a bipartisan effort to help Taiwan regain its status as an observer in the WHO.
From 2009 to 2016, Taiwan was able to attend meetings of the WHO’s decision-making body, the World Health Assembly, as an observer. However, Taiwan has been blocked from these meetings since President Tsai Ing-wen took office in 2016 due to pressure from China.
The US lawmakers have introduced a bipartisan bill that calls for the US secretary of state to implement strategies that will help Taiwan regain its status in the WHO and the World Health Assembly.
The bill states that Taiwan is a model for global health, and a contributor to it. The bill also cites Taiwan’s investment of more than US$6 billion in international medical and humanitarian aid for over 80 countries since 1996. The bill states that Taiwan has donated tens of millions of medical supplies to countries worldwide since the COVID-19 pandemic broke out. It says that leaving Taiwan out of the global health system only creates risk for other countries.