The Department of Health and Human Services has experienced yet another round of large layoffs, affecting the federal staff in charge of medical research, food and drug safety, and healthcare for a large number of Americans.
Under Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s leadership, HHS is laying off 25% of its employees.
Some workers learned of their layoffs when they got to work, while others received the news by email at 5 a.m. on Tuesday.
Numerous important professionals who have long influenced U.S. choices on medical research, medication approvals, and other matters are no longer with the federal government as a result of the cuts, which include scientists, doctors, researchers, support personnel, and senior officials.
At the Mary Switzer Building in Southwest D.C., lines of HHS workers waited to find out if they were still employed by comparing their security badges at the building’s door.
If not, it indicated that they were unemployed. A number of former HHS workers were observed packing up their desks and heading out with their possessions.
Severance compensation is supposed to be given to laid-off workers, but some are being informed that their terminations were because they performed poorly on the job, therefore they won’t get it.
Layoffs impacted CDC, NIH, and FDA employees at a regional HHS office in Rockville, MD.
Many workers are reportedly being forced to resign after being informed that their jobs have been moved across the nation.
Together with other DOGE initiatives, these layoffs are bringing the HHS workforce down from about 82,000 workers to 62,000.
According to HHS, the layoffs should result in an annual savings of $1.8 billion from the department’s $1.7 trillion budget, the majority of which is used to pay for millions of Americans’ health insurance coverage through Medicare and Medicaid.
“Well, it’s just psychological torture… like every day not knowing if you have a job or not. And it’s not being based on anything that’s legal or people’s real performance. People are getting fired who are exemplary performers and dedicated civil servants. So I just wish people knew that these are people that are hard-working and work for the American people. They’re not partisan,” Bridget, one HHS employee stated.
“Right now it’s just really quiet and kind of somber. It’s uncertainty at this point. How are you handling it? It’s uncertain. It’s very uncertain right now. I feel for my colleagues… a lot of colleagues and friends that are in our regional offices that have been affected by this RIF, so right now my heart just goes out to them,” HHS employee Tanesha Canzater stated.
Sen. Patty Murray, a Democrat from Washington, said the cuts will have consequences when infectious diseases, such as the current measles outbreak, spread or natural disasters occur.
“The revolution begins today!” As he welcomed the swearing-in of his newest recruits, Bhattacharya and Martin Makary, the new commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. posted on social media. Kennedy’s post was made just hours after layoff notifications were sent to employees via email.
Last week, Kennedy unveiled a plan to restructure the department, which through its agencies is in charge of monitoring food and medicine safety, conducting and funding medical research, tracking health trends and disease outbreaks, and managing health insurance programs for almost half of the nation.
HHS released a breakdown of some of the cutbacks on Thursday, but it hasn’t offered any more information or remarks regarding the mass firings that occurred on Tuesday.
- The FDA, which inspects and establishes safety standards for pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and foods, employs 3,500 people.
- 2,400 positions at the CDC, which collaborates with public health organizations across the country and keeps an eye out for infectious disease epidemics.
- 1,200 positions at NIH.
- 300 positions at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which is in charge of Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act marketplace.
This information has been sourced from fox4news.
Leave a Comment