U.S. global health funding draws majority support
Overview
About six-in-ten adults (59.3%) would maintain U.S. global health funding at current levels (23.0%) or increase it (36.3%). About three-in-ten (29.1%) would decrease it or eliminate it, including just 6.2% who would eliminate it entirely.
On the new U.S.-Africa health agreements, the most-agreed statement (41.5%) is that the U.S. should prioritize helping African countries build their own health manufacturing, medicine production and infrastructure.
Topline
59.3% would maintain or increase U.S. global health funding; 29.1% would decrease or eliminate it.
Do you think the US should increase, maintain, decrease, or eliminate its global health funding, which costs several billions dollars per year?
- Maintain at current levels 23.0%
- Increase somewhat 18.6%
- Increase significantly 17.7%
- Decrease somewhat 13.1%
- I have no option about it / none of the above 11.6%
- Decrease significantly 9.8%
Verasight PAA Omnibus Survey #2026-051
View source dataMost would keep or grow the funding
Asked about U.S. global health funding, which costs several billion dollars a year, 59.3% of adults would maintain it at current levels (23.0%) or increase it (36.3%).
About three-in-ten (29.1%) would cut it: 13.1% would decrease it somewhat, 9.8% significantly and just 6.2% would eliminate it entirely. Another 11.6% have no opinion.
Topline
41.5% agree the U.S. should prioritize helping African countries build their own health manufacturing and infrastructure, the most-agreed statement tested.
Please select ALL options that you agree with
- The US should prioritize helping African countries build their own health manufacturing capacity, local medicine production, and health infrastructure so they can become more self-reliant over time 41.5%
- The US can exchange global health funding with African countries in exchange for minerals and other natural resources. 25.7%
- The US should prioritze securing rapid access to African health data, disease surveilance information, and samples to better protect the US and global health security from future epidemics. 25.3%
- The US should respect national sovereignty and not force countries to share their citizens' health data in exchange for funding. 25.0%
- The US should significantly reduce overall global health funding to Africa and focus only on programs that deliver clear, direct benefits to American interests. 23.5%
- The US should only finance programs that have mutual benefits rather than purely development-focused aid. 19.9%
Verasight PAA Omnibus Survey #2026-051
View source dataBuilding capacity beats trading aid for resources
Offered statements about the new U.S.-Africa health agreements, adults agree most (41.5%) that the U.S. should prioritize helping African countries build their own health manufacturing capacity, local medicine production and health infrastructure.
Transactional approaches draw about a quarter each: 25.7% agree the U.S. can exchange health funding for minerals and other resources, and 25.3% agree it should prioritize rapid access to African health data.
Cutting has an age gradient
Agreement that the U.S. should significantly reduce global health funding to Africa and focus only on direct American benefits sits at 23.5% overall, but reaches 33.0% among adults 50-64 versus 15.5% among adults 18-29.
Methodology
Full methodology- Mode
- Verasight panel recruited via random address-based sampling, random person-to-person text messaging, and dynamic online targeting
- Population
- US adults age 18+
- Field dates
- 2026-06-03 → 2026-06-08
- Base (unweighted)
- 1,000
- Margin of error
- +/- 3.1%
- Module
- A
- Sponsor
- Verasight
- Weight variable
- weight
- Weighting targets
- age, race/ethnicity, sex, income, education, region, metropolitan status
Sources
[2]- 01Do you think the US should increase, maintain, decrease, or eliminate its global health funding, which costs several billions dollars per year?Shows whether adults would increase, maintain, decrease or eliminate U.S. global health funding; 59.3% would maintain or increase it.reports.verasight.io/r/paa-2026
- 02Please select ALL options that you agree withShows which statements about U.S.-Africa health agreements adults agree with; building self-reliance draws the most agreement at 41.5%.reports.verasight.io/r/paa-2026
Citation
Verasight PAA Omnibus Survey #2026-051, fielded June 3-8, 2026, N=1,000 US adults age 18+, +/- 3.1%.