(SRN NEWS/REUTERS) – Almost half of the probationary workers at the Atlanta-based CDC are being forced out as President Donald Trump overhauls government agencies.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the CDC, confirmed it was taking action on an order to streamline and restructure.
Some of those fired on Friday were first-year fellows in the agency’s two-year Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) program, which trains healthcare professionals to investigate diseases.
The CDC has between 120 and 180 EIS officers in any given year across the first- and second-year classes, its website shows.
The Associated Press reported on Friday that 1,300 probationary employees were being let go, citing a federal official. The CDC had 12,000 employees as of last year.
The move came on the first full day for Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who was confirmed on Thursday despite being an avowed vaccine skeptic and critic of the CDC and other agencies under his watch.
The CDC is used as a public health model around the world to track and respond to infectious disease outbreaks, including recommending licensed vaccines such as routine vaccines used in childhood and those given during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“HHS is following the Administration’s guidance and taking action to support the President’s broader efforts to restructure and streamline the federal government,” an HHS spokesperson said when asked about the cuts.
“This is to ensure that HHS better serves the American people at the highest and most efficient standard.”
The CDC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The layoffs were part of a verbal notice from HHS in a meeting with CDC leaders, AP reported, citing a federal official who was at the meeting.