Strategies and Implications of U.S. Official Development Assistance for Health

Corresponding author: Wang Yunping, wangyp@nhei.cn

DOI: 10.12201/bmr.202608.00031

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  Abstract: To clarify the strategic operational logic, institutional characteristics, and practical gains and limitations of U.S. Official Development Assistance for Health (ODA-H) since the beginning of the 21st century, this study analyzes U.S. policy documents and aid data from 2001 to 2025. The findings show that the United States has embedded ODA-H into national security and diplomatic strategies. Through checks and balances between the White House and Congress, dual-track management of diplomatic coordination and technical support, and a contractual implementation network involving multiple actors, the system integrates resource mobilization and transnational action capacity. Its aid resources are concentrated in core U.S.-based institutions and multilateral platforms; sectorally, they focus on infectious disease control and public health emergency response; geographically, they prioritize sub-Saharan Africa and geopolitically significant regions. While the model serves U.S. core interests and global health public goods provision, it is constrained by domestic political cycles, supply-demand mismatches, and insufficient endogenous capacity in recipient health systems. This study offers insights for China''s international health development cooperation.

  Key words: Development Assistance for Health; United States; Health Security; Global Health Governance

  Submit time: 16 August 2026

  Copyright: The copyright holder for this preprint is the author/funder, who has granted biomedRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity.
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  1	2026-04-23	10.12201/bmr.202608.00031V1	Download

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