‘We Don’t Blindly Accept Data.’ Top WHO Official Defends the Group’s Response to COVID-19
April 20, 2020 / BY JAMIE DUCHARME
As the standoff between the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Trump Administration continues, a top WHO official is defending the organization’s efforts to gather and share information about COVID-19 with the world, despite “the politics in the way right now.”
In an interview with TIME, Maria Van Kerkhove, the American infectious-disease epidemiologist serving as the WHO’s technical lead for COVID-19, pushed back on criticism from people, including U.S. President Donald Trump, that the WHO was too reliant on Chinese data and waited too long to warn the world about risks like widespread person-to-person transmission.
“We don’t blindly accept data as-is,” Van Kerkhove says. “Things are reported to us, and then we scrutinize and ask and kick the tires. We always ask for more. That’s not unique to the situation and that’s not unique to China.”
The WHO’s early response to COVID-19 has been under fresh scrutiny since Trump last week decided to pull U.S. funding to the group, sparking backlash from countries and health experts around the world. The U.S. was the WHO’s largest benefactor last year, providing more than $400 million.
