The U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has confirmed plans to cut 10,000 full-time positions across various departments as part of efforts to restructure federal health agencies. This reduction comes in addition to approximately 10,000 employees who have already left HHS since President Donald Trump took office, through voluntary separation agreements. Reports indicate that if fully implemented, these cuts would result in a reduction of about a quarter of federal health workers, shrinking the department’s workforce to 62,000 employees.
HHS, a $1.7 trillion agency, oversees critical areas such as vaccines, medicines, scientific research, public health infrastructure, pandemic readiness, and food and tobacco products. It also manages government-funded healthcare for millions of Americans, including seniors, disabled individuals, and lower-income patients who depend on Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act’s markets.
Despite the job cuts, HHS will maintain essential health services, though it plans to close five of its ten regional offices, according to reports. — news from CNBC