CDC Scientist Expresses Concern Over Layoffs Amid Government Shutdown
A CDC scientist, recently laid off during the government shutdown, warns of increased preventable deaths due to staff reductions.
A scientist formerly employed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has raised concerns about the potential public health impact following recent layoffs amid the ongoing government shutdown. The scientist, who requested anonymity due to fear of retribution, stated that the staff reductions could lead to an increase in preventable deaths.
"It's going to mean more deaths, more preventable deaths," she told CBS News on Wednesday. "People will absolutely die from the impact of this administration."
The scientist, who had been with the CDC for a decade focusing on chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease, reported that entire programs, including those mandated by law, have been cut, leaving no staff to continue the work.
"They went in and fired entire programs, even statutorily mandated by law programs, they cut entirely," she said. "So there is no staff to do this work anymore."
The layoffs are part of a broader reduction in force implemented by the Trump administration during the shutdown, affecting over 4,000 federal workers across various agencies. Russell Vought, Director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, indicated that the number could exceed 10,000.
"I think we'll probably end up being north of 10,000," Vought said Wednesday during an appearance on "The Charlie Kirk Show."
Approximately 600 CDC employees have been laid off since last week. However, a federal judge in Northern California issued a verbal order temporarily halting all government layoffs initiated since the shutdown began, in response to a lawsuit filed by federal employees' unions. This ruling places the layoffs on hold while the case proceeds.
The scientist emphasized that the staff reductions will significantly hinder the CDC's ability to respond to public health outbreaks, citing a recent measles outbreak in South Carolina as an example.
"The surge capacity of the CDC is going to be significantly hampered with these cuts," she told CBS News. "It's going to impede our ability to respond to public health outbreaks, just when all of these threats are on the rise."
An HHS spokesperson stated that the layoffs are part of an effort to reduce bureaucracy and that the positions were deemed non-essential by their respective divisions.
"HHS continues to close wasteful and duplicative entities, including those that are at odds with the Trump administration's Make America Healthy Again agenda," the spokesperson said in a statement.
The situation remains fluid as legal proceedings continue and the government shutdown persists.