People in 70 countries are missing out on medical care amid funding cuts, says WHO

GENEVA (Reuters) -People in at least 70 countries are missing out on medical treatment due to funding cuts to aid programmes, the WHO said on Monday, adding it also faces major financial challenges.

"Patients are missing out on treatments, health facilities have closed, health workers have lost their jobs, and people face increased out-of-pocket health spending," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in an address to the World Health Assembly.

The WHO is currently facing a $600 million hole in its annual budget and cuts of 21% over the next two-year period.

Hundreds of WHO officials are joining donors and diplomats in Geneva from Monday to discuss how to cope with crises from mpox to cholera without their main funder, the United States.

As the United States prepares to exit the organisation, China is set to become the biggest provider of state fees - one of the WHO's main streams of funding alongside donations.

"Many ministers have told me that sudden and steep cuts to bilateral aid are causing severe disruption in their countries, and imperiling the health of millions of people," Tedros added.

Tedros said that states should consider spending more money on global health, at a time when defense expenditure is increasing: "Countries spend vast sums protecting themselves against attacks from other countries, but relatively little on protecting themselves from an invisible enemy that can cause far more damage."

WHO has revised down its budget to 4.2 billion dollars for the next two years - 2.1 billion a year.

"2.1 billion dollars is the equivalent of global military expenditure every eight hours," Tedros told delegates.

He added that the WHO has already taken steps to cut its workforce, budget and the scope of its work. Last week it cut half of its senior leadership team.

(Reporting by Olivia Le Poidevin, Editing by Alexandra Hudson)