The United States authorities has undergone a serious shakeup since Donald Trump took workplace. Earlier this yr, range, fairness and inclusion (DEI) packages have been slashed, and, most not too long ago, the Department of Health and Human Services introduced layoffs in an try to “restructure” the system. The division’s new secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., mentioned that the HHS grew to become “wasteful and inefficient” in a press release shared by way of the division’s web site.
“Over time, bureaucracies like HHS turn into wasteful and inefficient even when most of their workers are devoted and competent civil servants,” Kennedy mentioned within the assertion. “This overhaul will probably be a win-win for taxpayers and for those who HHS serves. That’s your entire American public, as a result of our aim is to make America wholesome once more.”
Below, be taught what number of HHS workers will probably be laid off.
We are streamlining HHS to make our company extra environment friendly and more practical. We will eradicate a complete alphabet soup of departments, whereas preserving their core features by merging them into a brand new group known as the Administration for a Healthy America or AHA. This… pic.twitter.com/BlQWUpK3u7
— Secretary Kennedy (@SecKennedy) March 27, 2025
How Many Employees Worked for the HHS?
There have been 82,000 full-time workers that labored for the Health and Human Services Department, based on its web site.
How Many People Got Fired From the HHS?
So far, 10,000 workers have left the division voluntarily, based on CNN, however there will probably be a complete of 20,000 job cuts ultimately. The HHS famous on its web site that the “restructuring” will downsize the division from 82,000 full-time workers to 62,000.
Why Did the HHS Fire Employees?
The HHS famous that the discount in workforce will “serve a number of targets with out impacting crucial companies” and “save taxpayers $1.8 billion per yr by means of a discount in workforce.”
“We aren’t simply decreasing bureaucratic sprawl. We are realigning the group with its core mission and our new priorities in reversing the persistent illness epidemic,” RFK Jr. mentioned in a press release. “This division will do extra – much more – at a decrease value to the taxpayer.”
Additionally, the HHS plans to jettison “many redundant items,” noting that its current 28 divisions will probably be decreased to fifteen, together with a “new Administration for a Healthy America, or AHA, and can centralize core features comparable to Human Resources, Information Technology, Procurement, External Affairs, and Policy.”
The restructuring can be a part of the aim to implement the HHS’ “new precedence” to finish “America’s epidemic of persistent sickness by specializing in secure, healthful meals, clear water and the elimination of environmental toxins,” based on the division’s web site.