Management
Federal judge deems Trump administration’s termination of NIH grants illegal
In a ruling issued Monday, the judge called the government’s directives “arbitrary and capricious” and ordered funding for some of the NIH grants, including many profiled by ProPublica in recent months, to be restored.
Workforce
CDC has shed one-quarter of staff even as it recalls some laid off workers
Agency tells court that states are not suffering "irreparable harm" from cuts even as agency leaders lament "operational disruptions" and "loss of expertise and capacity."
Management
NIH director bemoans RIFs, mocks ‘5 things’ email and says agency shoulders blame for COVID outbreak in first address
New agency head also says some laid off employees may be recalled, including to help address supply shortages at labs and medical centers.
Exclusive
Workforce
CDC to cut one employee for each it is recalling from layoffs
The agency returned around 300 staff and plans to soon cut an additional 300 in response.
Workforce
HHS recalls some previously laid off worker safety employees
Elsewhere, the department is issuing new RIFs for each employee it brings back.
Workforce
19 states sue Trump administration over mass layoffs at HHS
States argue key programs on which they have relied are no longer operating and ask the court to reinstate workers.
Management
Former NSF heads criticize funding and staff cuts at science agency
Former National Science Foundation and National Science Board leads sent a letter to congressional leadership saying the cuts to the agency run contrary to the Trump administration’s priorities.
Workforce
Trump laid off nearly all the federal workers who investigate firefighter deaths
At least two-thirds of the employees at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health were notified on April 1 that they had been laid off or will be in June. That includes almost all of the Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program.
Management
How cyber vulnerabilities and workforce cuts threaten the crisis lifeline program
A bipartisan, bicameral measure is hoping to prevent cyber incidents from limiting access to the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline after a 2022 attack on a system operator disrupted calls to the hotline.
Tech
Deep cuts hit HHS tech offices
Current employees say that dramatic cuts to leadership and career staff within FDA and HHS have left critical projects at risk.
Pay & Benefits
Public Health Service officers would receive military leave benefits under bipartisan bill
The Commissioned Corps of the Public Health Service is one of the uniformed services, which are associated with the armed forces, but don’t receive the same paid leave benefits.
Workforce
Cancer researchers, opioid abuse analysts, infectious disease experts: Layoffs at HHS begin to take shape
Tears and added security greeted employees unexpectedly turned away from their offices Tuesday.
Transition
They worked to prevent death. The Trump administration fired them.
While the White House hasn't provided official figures, swathes of federal employees from across the public health sector, from organ donation to neonatal care, have been let go in the early days of the second Trump administration.
Updated
Management
Senate confirms RFK Jr. to lead HHS
Kennedy’s confirmation comes during a legal battle over whether the National Institutes of Health can cap the percentage of funding it provides for indirect research costs.
Transition
Democrats worry RFK Jr. could purge ‘thousands’ of federal health employees
Trump’s nominee for Health and Human Services secretary said that NIH, FDA and CDC would be integral in his objective to prevent chronic disease.
Management
Will civil service protections hold up against RFK Jr.’s threats to the federal public health workforce?
Kennedy, Trump’s pick to lead HHS, has talked openly about removing swaths of civil servants at FDA and NIH.
Oversight
HHS to crack down on providers blocking access to electronic medical records
The Health and Human Services Department has received more than a thousand claims of blocked or stymied access to electronic health record information in recent years.
News
States, tribes get $1.5B in federal grants to fight the opioid epidemic
The federal funds will support substance use prevention and treatment efforts, workforce capacity building and access to medications to reduce addiction.
Management
FDA greenlights a new COVID vaccine after a summer of rising numbers of cases
While the death rate from COVID-19 steadily decreased during the first half of the year, it began ticking up slightly in June, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Oversight