STORY AT-A-GLANCE
- The WHO’s influenza pandemic plan, devised in 1999, was heavily influenced by the drug industry
- The Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) questioned the WHO’s handling of the 2009 swine flu pandemic, saying its recommendation to stockpile antivirals and vaccines wasted public funds
- PACE concluded there was “overwhelming evidence that the seriousness of the pandemic was vastly overrated by WHO,” and that the drug industry had influenced the organization’s decision-making
- There’s other evidence suggesting the WHO is acting as little more than a Big Pharma front group. For example, a 2019 congressional report concluded Purdue Pharma had influenced WHO’s opioid guidelines
- Only 25% of WHO’s funding comes from member states. The remaining 75% comes from voluntary contributions. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation — the investments of which include junk food manufacturers, alcohol and drug retailers — is the biggest funder
