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HHS Initiates Widespread Job Reductions Affecting Thousands of Employees
In a significant restructuring, the U.S. Health and Human Services Department (HHS) commenced issuing dismissal notifications to staff on Tuesday, signaling the start of broad job cuts projected to impact up to 10,000 positions. These notices were distributed shortly after actions by the Trump administration to limit collective bargaining rights for employees at HHS and other federal bodies.
NIH Among Agencies Experiencing Workforce Reductions
The layoffs extend to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), a leading global institution for health and medical research. These workforce reductions coincided with the first day of Dr. Jay Bhattacharya’s tenure as the new director of the NIH.
Department-Wide Restructuring Underway
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had previously announced a departmental overhaul. HHS agencies are critical for monitoring public health trends and disease outbreaks, supporting medical research, ensuring the safety of food and pharmaceuticals, and managing health insurance programs for a substantial portion of the population.
Consolidation of Key Health Services
The restructuring plan involves consolidating agencies responsible for billions in funding for addiction services and community health centers under a newly established entity known as the Administration for a Healthy America.
Significant Reduction in HHS Staffing Levels
These personnel reductions are anticipated to decrease HHS staffing to approximately 62,000 positions. This represents a near 25% decrease in staff, encompassing 10,000 layoffs and an additional 10,000 positions reduced through early retirement and voluntary separation agreements.
Employees React to Job Loss Notifications
On Tuesday morning, long queues of HHS employees formed outside the headquarters building. Staff members waited in cool spring weather for security access, with some expressing uncertainty about their employment status. Outside the building, many employees who had been informed of their termination, some with decades of service, gathered at nearby cafes and restaurants.
One employee reportedly questioned if the dismissals were an ill-conceived April Fools’ prank.
Impact on NIH Leadership and Staff
Sources within the NIH indicate that the job cuts included the administrative leave of at least four directors across the NIH’s 27 institutes and centers. Furthermore, entire communications teams were reportedly terminated, according to a senior agency official who requested anonymity.
An email reviewed by the Associated Press revealed that some senior NIH employees at the Bethesda, Maryland campus placed on leave were offered potential transfers to the Indian Health Service, with locations including Alaska, and were given a deadline of Wednesday to respond.
FDA and Other Agencies Affected by Reductions
At the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), numerous staff members involved in drug and tobacco regulation received notifications, including the office responsible for drafting regulations for e-cigarettes and related products. These notices occurred concurrently with the removal of the FDA’s tobacco division chief. Moreover, over a dozen media relations and communications supervisors agency-wide were informed of their impending job eliminations.
Concerns Raised Over Public Health Preparedness
Democratic Senator Patty Murray from Washington cautioned about the potential consequences of these cuts on the nation’s capacity to respond to natural disasters and infectious disease outbreaks, such as the current measles situation.
Senator Murray stated on Friday that the restructuring could be seen as detrimental to public health, potentially endangering lives.
State and Local Health Departments Face Budgetary Strain
Beyond federal health agencies, state and local health departments are also beginning to experience funding reductions. This follows a recent HHS decision to retract over $11 billion in previously allocated COVID-19 relief funds. State and local health officials are still evaluating the full impact; however, some departments have already identified hundreds of positions at risk due to the funding rescissions, with some jobs already eliminated or imminently at risk, according to Lori Tremmel Freeman, chief executive of the National Association of County and City Health Officials.
Union Notice Details Scope of Job Reductions
Union representatives for HHS personnel received a notice on Thursday indicating that 8,000 to 10,000 employees would be terminated. HHS leadership will be targeting roles in human resources, procurement, finance, and IT. Positions in areas with high living costs or those considered “redundant” are prioritized for layoffs.
Secretary Kennedy Justifies Restructuring
Secretary Kennedy, in a video announcement on Thursday, described the department he leads as an overly bureaucratic and inefficient entity. He argued that the department’s $1.7 trillion annual budget has not effectively improved Americans’ health.
“I want to assure you that we are committed to achieving more with fewer resources,” Kennedy stated.
Breakdown of Job Cuts by Agency
On Thursday, the department released a detailed breakdown of some of the planned reductions:
- Food and Drug Administration (FDA): 3,500 positions involved in medication, medical device, and food safety standards and inspections.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): 2,400 positions focused on infectious disease monitoring and collaboration with public health agencies.
- National Institutes of Health (NIH): 1,200 positions.
- Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS): 300 positions overseeing the Affordable Care Act, Medicare, and Medicaid.
Unionization Efforts and Collective Bargaining
While most CDC employees were not previously unionized, there has been a notable increase in unionization interest this year, coinciding with the Trump administration’s efforts to reduce the federal workforce. Approximately 2,000 CDC employees in Atlanta were part of the American Federation of Government Employees local bargaining unit, with hundreds more recently petitioning to join.
However, on Thursday night, President Trump signed an executive order that would eliminate collective bargaining for a significant number of federal agencies, including the CDC and other health-related agencies.
Lawmakers Condemn Curtailment of Bargaining Rights
The limitation of collective bargaining rights has drawn criticism from Democratic lawmakers.
Representatives Gerald Connolly and Bobby Scott of Virginia released a joint statement on Friday, describing President Trump’s attempt to remove union rights from federal employees as a move that “robs these workers of their hard-earned protections.”
Connolly and Scott asserted that this action would grant Trump advisor Elon Musk “more influence to dismantle the people’s government with minimal opposition from dedicated civil servants,” further weakening the federal government’s capacity to serve the American public.