Government Restructuring

In a sweeping overhaul of the U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS) Department, up to 10,000 employees are set to be laid off following President Donald Trump’s move to strip workers of collective bargaining rights. The restructuring, announced last week, aims to consolidate federal health agencies and reduce the workforce by nearly a quarter. On Tuesday, employees across HHS received dismissal notices, with long lines forming outside the department’s headquarters as workers awaited confirmation of their employment status. Some gathered in coffee shops after being turned away, learning they had lost their jobs after decades of service. At the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the cuts coincided with the first day of its new director, Dr. Jay Bhattacharya. Four directors of NIH’s 27 institutes were placed on administrative leave, while entire communications teams were let go. Some senior staffers were offered possible transfers to the Indian Health Service, with limited time to respond. At the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), dozens of employees responsible for regulating drugs and tobacco products were dismissed, including the entire team working on electronic cigarette regulations. The FDA’s tobacco chief was also removed from his position. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which monitors disease outbreaks and public health threats, is set to lose 2,400 employees. Democratic Senator Patty Murray warned that the cuts would weaken the government’s ability to respond to crises, saying, “They may as well be renaming it the Department of Disease.” The layoffs come alongside a broader rollback of federal spending, with HHS pulling back over $11 billion in COVID-19-related funding, leading to additional job losses at state and local health departments. HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. defended the restructuring, calling the agency an inefficient “sprawling bureaucracy” with a $1.7 trillion budget that has “failed to improve the health of Americans.” Meanwhile, Trump’s executive order ending collective bargaining for thousands of federal workers has drawn backlash from Democratic lawmakers, who argue it weakens labor protections and limits government accountability. Representatives Gerald Connolly and Bobby Scott criticized the move, stating that it hands more control to Trump adviser Elon Musk to dismantle public service institutions. Breakdown of Job Cuts: 3,500 positions at the FDA 2,400 positions at the CDC 1,200 positions at the NIH 300 positions at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services The sweeping changes mark one of the most significant federal workforce reductions in recent history, sparking concerns over the future of public health services in the U.S. Source: Hindustan