Is the US prepared to deal with another pandemic or widespread health crisis?
Based on current assessments, most public health experts and watchdog organizations suggest the U.S. is less prepared than it should be for another large-scale health crisis, citing a combination of funding cuts, workforce losses, leadership gaps, and withdrawal from international cooperation mechanisms. Here's a breakdown:
Signs of Weakened Preparedness
Federal funding cuts. The CDC's budget would be reduced by 53 percent if the administration's proposed FY 2026 budget is adopted, compared to FY 2024 levels. More specifically, CDC's Public Health Emergency Preparedness program – the primary source of federal funding for state and local emergency preparedness – faces a 52 percent funding reduction. Overall, over 100 public health programs and funding lines would be eliminated under the proposed FY 2026 budget, including 61 programs at CDC.
Workforce depletion. Expertise is being lost at a rapid rate: the number of career Senior Executive Service staff at CDC decreased 42.9% between December 2024 and February 2026, while there was a 71.9% decrease in project grant funding issued by CDC in fiscal year 2025 compared to fiscal year 2024.
Loss of dedicated pandemic leadership. The White House's own pandemic office has been gutted — in 2025, Gerald Parker resigned as head of the office, leaving the office with no employees.
International disengagement. The U.S. has stepped back from global health security structures. In 2026, the U.S. announced its withdrawal from the WHO after almost 78 years of membership, which it said was in response to "the WHO's failures during the COVID-19 pandemic". Analysts warn this creates real gaps: the withdrawal of the United States from WHO introduces a structural discontinuity in surveillance and financing that no complementary arrangement yet remedies.
Legislative gridlock. Even routine reauthorization of preparedness law has stalled — Congress ultimately removed PAHPA (Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act) from the bill, along with many other provisions, after members of the incoming administration's transition team raised concerns about the size and scope of the legislation. Experts warn this instability itself is damaging: "Boom and bust" funding cycles are detrimental to readiness and response infrastructure.
Uneven State-Level Readiness
The nonpartisan Trust for America's Health "Ready or Not" report finds significant disparities across states. It places 20 states in the high-performance tier, 17 states and the District of Columbia in the middle-performance tier, and 13 states in the low-performance tier for emergency preparedness. The report notes this comes at a difficult moment, since in 2025, the country faced the most severe flu season in nearly a decade, rising measles outbreaks, continued H5N1 avian influenza activity, and a growing number of extreme weather events—all while the federal systems built over decades to help states prepare for and respond to emergencies came under significant strain. It specifically flags that this year's report includes a special feature examining how federal workforce reductions and funding instability could weaken preparedness nationwide.
Coordination Problems Persist
A recent GAO report found structural coordination issues remain unresolved even years after COVID-19. Lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic have demonstrated the importance of coordination between these systems, such as between state health departments and hospitals, if jurisdictions are to be effectively prepared, yet gaps persist in how federal agencies manage overlapping preparedness programs.
Political/Legal Turmoil Adds Instability
Grant cuts have even triggered active litigation. In early 2026, the CDC announced more than $600 million in cuts to public health grants in California, Illinois, Colorado and Minnesota, prompting state attorneys general to sue, after which a federal judge blocked the Trump administration's action with a temporary restraining order — illustrating an environment of legal and funding unpredictability for public health agencies.
Broader Historical Context
A Council on Foreign Relations task force reviewing the COVID-19 response more generally concluded that U.S. and global efforts to prepare for the inevitability of pandemics provided the illusion—but not the reality—of preparedness, and that despite a succession of previous global public health emergencies, the United States and other governments failed to invest adequately in prevention, detection, and response capabilities.
Bottom Line
The weight of current expert and watchdog assessments points to a declining trajectory in U.S. pandemic preparedness rather than improvement since COVID-19. Combined federal budget cuts, CDC workforce attrition, the dissolution of the White House's pandemic office, withdrawal from the WHO, and stalled reauthorization of core preparedness law have led public health organizations to warn that the system is less resilient than it was just a few years ago — even as new threats (H5N1 avian flu, measles resurgence, severe flu seasons) continue to test it. State-level readiness remains highly uneven, and legal battles over federal funding cuts add further instability to the system's ability to respond quickly and consistently in a future crisis.
Citations (19)
- Public Health Infrastructure in Crisis: HHS Workforce Cuts, Reorganizations, and Funding Reductions: Impacts and Solutions - TFAH
Source excerpt: “Among the report’s findings are that CDC’s budget would be reduced by 53 percent if the administration’s proposed FY 2026 budget is adopted. ”
statistic, official document, points to no. Claim: CDC's budget would be reduced by 53 percent under the proposed FY 2026 budget compared to FY 2024 levels.
- Public Health Infrastructure in Crisis: HHS Workforce Cuts, Reorganizations, and Funding Reductions: Impacts and Solutions - TFAH
Source excerpt: “- The President’s proposed FY 2026 budget for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) amounts to a 53 percent reduction in funding as com...”
statistic, official document, points to no. Claim: The proposed FY 2026 CDC budget amounts to a 53 percent funding reduction.
- New Public Health Report Reveals Impact of Public Health Cuts - Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health (ASPPH)
Source excerpt: “Within the total proposed cut, CDC’s Public Health Emergency Preparedness program – the primary source of federal funding for state and local emergenc...”
statistic, article, points to no. Claim: CDC's Public Health Emergency Preparedness program, the primary federal funding source for state and local preparedness, faces a 52 percent reduction.
- New Public Health Report Reveals Impact of Public Health Cuts - Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health (ASPPH)
Source excerpt: “- Over 100 public health programs and funding lines would be eliminated under the President’s proposed FY 2026 budget, including 61 programs at CDC an...”
statistic, article, points to no. Claim: Over 100 public health programs would be eliminated under the proposed FY 2026 budget, including 61 at CDC.
- The Cost of Cutting American Science: How Federal Cuts Diminish Public Health Capacity - Partnership for Public Service
Source excerpt: “At the CDC, for example, the number of career SES decreased 42.9% between December 2024 and February 2026, while the number of non-Senate confirmed po...”
statistic, official document, points to no. Claim: Career Senior Executive Service staff at CDC decreased 42.9% between December 2024 and February 2026.
- The Cost of Cutting American Science: How Federal Cuts Diminish Public Health Capacity - Partnership for Public Service
Source excerpt: “At the CDC, for example, there was a 71.9% decrease in the amount of project grant funding issued in fiscal year 2025 compared to fiscal year 2024. ”
statistic, official document, points to no. Claim: CDC project grant funding issued fell 71.9% in fiscal year 2025 compared to fiscal year 2024.
- White House Office of Pandemic Preparedness and Response Policy
Source excerpt: “[[6]](./White_House_Office_of_Pandemic_Preparedness_and_Response_Policy#cite_note-6) In 2025, Gerald Parker resigned as head of the office, leaving th...”
evidence, reference entry, points to no. Claim: Gerald Parker resigned in 2025 as head of the White House pandemic office, leaving it with no employees.
- How Are We Preparing For the Next Pandemic?
Source excerpt: “In 2026, the U.S. announced its withdrawal from the WHO after almost 78 years of membership, which it said was in response to “the WHO’s failures duri...”
evidence, article, points to no. Claim: The US announced in 2026 its withdrawal from the WHO after almost 78 years, citing WHO's COVID-19 failures.
- (DOC) International Pandemic Preparedness Protocols: A Critical Assessment for 2026 A Multi-Perspective Working Paper March 2026
Source excerpt: “The adoption of the WHO Pandemic Agreement in May 2025, together with the 2024 amendments to the International Health Regulations ... # International...”
attribution, other, points to no. Claim: Analysts warn WHO withdrawal introduces structural discontinuity in surveillance and financing that no complementary arrangement remedies.
- The Future of PAHPA and National Public Health Preparedness
Source excerpt: “# The Future of PAHPA and National Public Health Preparedness Congress ultimately removed PAHPA from the bill, along with many other provisions, after...”
evidence, article, points to no. Claim: Congress removed PAHPA from the bill after transition team concerns about its size and scope.
- The Future of PAHPA and National Public Health Preparedness
Source excerpt: ““Boom and bust” funding cycles are detrimental to readiness and response infrastructure.”
attribution, article, points to no. Claim: Experts warn boom and bust funding cycles are detrimental to readiness and response infrastructure.
- Ready or Not 2026: Protecting the Public’s Health from Diseases, Disasters, and Bioterrorism - TFAH
Source excerpt: “The report also places states and the District of Columbia into three performance tiers: **20 states in the high-performance tier, 17 states and the D...”
statistic, official document, neutral. Claim: Ready or Not places 20 states in high tier, 17 plus DC in middle, 13 in low performance tier.
- Ready or Not 2026: Protecting the Public’s Health from Diseases, Disasters, and Bioterrorism - TFAH
Source excerpt: “In 2025, the country faced the most severe flu season in nearly a decade, rising measles outbreaks, continued H5N1 avian influenza activity, and a gro...”
evidence, official document, points to no. Claim: In 2025 the country faced severe flu season, measles outbreaks, H5N1 activity and extreme weather while federal systems were strained.
- Ready or Not 2026: Protecting the Public’s Health from Diseases, Disasters, and Bioterrorism - TFAH
Source excerpt: “**Special Feature: Preparedness at Risk** This year’s report includes a special feature examining how federal workforce reductions and funding inst...”
evidence, official document, points to no. Claim: The report includes a special feature on how federal workforce reductions and funding instability could weaken preparedness.
- U.S. GAO - Public Health Preparedness: Improved Coordination Needed for HHS’s Emergency Preparedness Programs
Source excerpt: “Lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic have demonstrated the importance of coordination between these systems, such as between state health depart...”
evidence, official document, points to no. Claim: GAO found coordination gaps persist in how federal agencies manage overlapping preparedness programs.
- Administration blocked as it tries to cut CDC funds that Trump just signed into law : NPR
Source excerpt: “It was deja vu from 2025: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week announced more than $600 million in cuts to public health grants in...”
evidence, article, points to no. Claim: CDC announced more than $600 million in public health grant cuts to California, Illinois, Colorado and Minnesota, prompting lawsuits.
- Administration blocked as it tries to cut CDC funds that Trump just signed into law : NPR
Source excerpt: “And the next day, a federal judge blocked the Trump administration's action with a temporary restraining order released late Thursday. ”
evidence, article, points to no. Claim: A federal judge blocked the administration's grant cuts with a temporary restraining order.
- Improving Pandemic Preparedness: Lessons From COVID-19
Source excerpt: “* - The Task Force finds that U.S. and global efforts to prepare for the inevitability of pandemics provided the illusion—but not the reality—of pr...”
attribution, official document, points to no. Claim: CFR task force concluded preparedness efforts provided the illusion, not the reality, of preparedness.
- Improving Pandemic Preparedness: Lessons From COVID-19
Source excerpt: “Despite a succession of previous global public health emergencies, the United States and other governments failed to invest adequately in prevention, ...”
attribution, official document, points to no. Claim: CFR task force found governments failed to invest adequately in prevention, detection, and response despite prior emergencies.