The Trump administration has mandated a 35% reduction in spending on contracts at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), a move confirmed by HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon when speaking to NPR. This measure affects all divisions under HHS, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
This development follows a significant staff reduction of nearly 25% within HHS. Nixon stated that the cutbacks aim to reduce unnecessary expenditures, conserve taxpayer money, and enhance operational efficiency. According to him, all agencies within HHS are dedicated to achieving this 35% reduction to utilize funds more effectively while still prioritizing their primary mission of improving public health services.
Dr. Robert Steinbrook from the consumer advocacy group Public Citizen explained that contract spending encompasses various services, ranging from janitorial work to specialized research equipment like freezer storage for bio-specimens or collaborations with external laboratories for testing.
Steinbrook expressed concern over the implications of these cuts, emphasizing that they could weaken public health further, especially during a period of widespread staff layoffs. He described the measures as “arbitrary and senseless,” predicting that they would likely disrupt rather than improve HHS’s functionality.
As part of its reorganization strategy, HHS has fired thousands of employees this week, implementing their plan to eliminate 10,000 positions. This is in addition to the departure of approximately 10,000 employees who left under the Trump administration’s “Fork in the Road” program, which offered early retirement options. The current plan includes cutting 3,500 full-time positions at the FDA, 2,400 at the CDC, and 1,200 at the NIH, among others.
Among the changes at the CDC, the human resources department was almost entirely dismissed, affecting employees’ access to severance information. Furthermore, the Division of HIV Prevention lost around half its staff, significantly reducing its capacity. The CDC also terminated its tobacco and smoking cessation programs, laying off about 150 workers and canceling associated contracts.
Environmental health teams also faced extensive cuts; the Division of Environmental Health Science and Practice, which played a role in local public health initiatives, was fully disbanded. Due to the chaotic nature of the layoffs, many CDC employees are unsure of the status of various divisions within the organization. Managers received no prior notification about the layoffs.
At the FDA, the layoff included the entire communications team, and significant reductions were made at the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, with over 800 positions eliminated.
Dr. Ashish Jha, the dean of the Brown University School of Public Health, raised concerns about the ability of these agencies to continue critical functions like tracking disease outbreaks and developing new treatments, worried about the larger impact on public health infrastructure.
In response, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. stressed that the layoffs are part of an effort to reduce “bureaucratic sprawl” and refocus the agency’s efforts on tackling chronic disease epidemics, aiming to render the HHS more effective and cost-efficient. Although acknowledging the difficulty of the situation, Kennedy maintained that these changes are necessary for the organization’s long-term goals.
For further information or insights about the restructuring, the authors of the report are welcoming contact from individuals via encrypted communication.
