WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Senator Rick Scott released the below statement following a letter he received from Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO). The letter came in response to a request by Senator Scott and his colleagues for information regarding the WHO’s failed and delayed response to the coronavirus.

Senator Rick Scott said, “Throughout this pandemic, the WHO has served as a puppet for the Chinese Communist Party. Instead of exposing Communist China’s deceit to the global community, the World Health Organization praised their response and was complicit in China’s cover-up. Our request for information gave the WHO an opportunity to admit their failures, and present a path forward. They chose instead to peddle their false narrative with more misinformation and lies. My colleagues and I requested detailed records of the WHO’s dealings with Communist China, as well as if any members of their leadership received outside compensation, and the WHO refused to provide this information. 

“I’ve long called for accountability for the WHO, which is clearly not qualified to handle a global health crisis. The President was right withdraw the U.S. from the WHO, which has proven to be a dangerous organization that doesn’t have America’s best interest in mind.”

Senator Scott has been calling for accountability for the WHO for months:

• In February, Senator Scott sent a letter to the Director-General of the WHO urging the WHO to do its own in-depth analysis on the extent of the coronavirus.
• In March, Senator Rick Scott called on Congress to hold a hearing and investigate the WHO’s role in helping Communist China cover up information regarding the threat of the coronavirus. 
• On April 10, Senator Scott wrote an op-ed for FOX News on how the WHO should be held accountable for its role in helping Communist China cover up the coronavirus pandemic, which cost thousands of lives around the world.
• On April 14, Senators Rick Scott, Ron Johnson, Martha McSally, Kevin Cramer, Steve Daines, Todd Young and Joni Ernst sent a letter to the WHO requesting information ahead of a Congressional hearing to investigate the WHO’s role in helping Communist China cover up information regarding the threat of the coronavirus.
• On April 17, Senator Rick Scott sent a letter to the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) Director Dr. Carissa Etienne requesting additional information on PAHO’s response to the coronavirus and any coordination with the WHO and the Communist Party of China, whose efforts to cover up the pandemic cost thousands of lives around the world.

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