WiRED’s Response to International Health Policy Changes
By Gary Selnow, Ph.D.
WiRED’s Executive Director
April 6, 2025
America’s international health policies have radically changed in the past two months. WiRED International — a non-partisan, non-profit organization receiving no government funding — operates within an overseas environment significantly impacted by U.S. Government assistance decisions.
As subscribers to our newsletter know, WiRED is taking small steps to address the consequences of our country’s reduced international assistance. It’s clear that neither WiRED nor most other NGOs can compensate for these funding cuts, leaving some of the world’s poorest populations to face the loss of vital medicine, vaccines, and manpower support previously subsidized by the U.S.
Antiretrovirals. Upon learning about the termination of USAID and the loss of PEPFAR support — ending the supply of antiretroviral (ARV) drugs — we recognized the potential for millions of deaths among adults and children living with HIV/AIDS. Our teams in Africa quickly confirmed these fears. Lacking the capacity to provide ARVs, WiRED’s medical writers immediately developed an educational module to teach community health workers (CHWs) how to manage the severe symptoms AIDS patients face. A companion module addressing patients’ emotional challenges will soon follow. Like all WiRED modules, these are immediately accessible globally on phones via our free Health Module Access Program (HealthMAP) app.
Vaccines. The abrupt U.S. termination of support for Gavi, the U.N. organization distributing vaccines in Africa, also immediately signaled devastating consequences, with infectious diseases likely to surge. Again, few if any NGOs can adequately replace this funding. Our response was to engage our writing teams to create training modules to help CHWs prepare communities for infectious disease prevention and treatment. Our library already contains modules on public health surveillance and more than 30 infectious disease topics, and we encourage all CHWs, regardless if they were trained by us or others, to download and study these modules. We aim to equip CHWs everywhere to assist communities facing the impending health crisis.
WiRED has provided healthcare training for nearly three decades, and we remain non-political. Regardless of U.S. political leadership, we have always proudly identified as an American organization, funded by Americans and staffed by American volunteers. A WiRED board member, Richard H. Carmona, M.D., M.P.H., FACS, the 17th Surgeon General of the United States, has often cited WiRED as a prime example of American soft power.
While some organizations may scale back in response to recent policy shifts, WiRED will expand its programs to enhance health education and training, preparing communities for future health challenges. We firmly believe that community health begins with knowledge and view our educational initiatives as essential in supporting medical interventions. Now more than ever, we are committed to leveraging our resources to play a larger role in community health in underserved regions globally.