At the 1945 founding conference of the United Nations in San Francisco, the delegates from China and Brazil suggested establishing an international health organization that works within the UN’s jurisdiction. Though a number of health organizations existed, including the International Office of Public Hygiene and the Health Organization of the League of Nations, the end of World War II called for the creation of a “single worldwide intergovernmental health organization, within the general framework of the United Nations, which would not only assume responsibility for the work of the earlier bodies but have an extended role necessitated by the new problems arising of the war.” Thus, the Constitution of the World Health Organization (WHO) was adopted on April 7, 1948, for the purpose of “providing leadership on global health matters, shaping the health research agenda, setting norms and standards, articulating evidence-based policy options, providing technical support to countries and monitoring and assessing health trends.” While the WHO Secretariat leads the day-to-day operations and responds to specific health-related situations, the World Health Assembly (WHA), made up of all the WHO member states, guides the organization’s policy and strategic direction.