Judge orders reinstatement of workers in health program for coal miners
A federal judge on Tuesday ordered the reinstatement of nearly 200 fired federal workers who screen coal miners for black lung, a deadly and incurable disease caused by inhaling toxic coal dust.
U.S. District Judge Irene C. Berger issued a preliminary injunction that compels the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), a division of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to bring back the workers in the Coal Workers' Health Surveillance Program.
Berger said Trump administration officials 'lack the authority to unilaterally cancel' the screening program, which was mandated by the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969. She ordered the program to be fully restored, with 'no pause, stoppage or gap in the protections and services.'
Under the screening program, coal miners can receive free and confidential chest X-rays to determine whether their lung tissue is damaged. Those who are diagnosed with black lung can transfer to a less dusty part of the mine without a pay cut, and they can apply for federal compensation for medical treatments and prescription drugs.
The screening program offers contracts to radiologists across the country who are certified to evaluate X-rays for black lung. It also employs epidemiologists who recently concluded that 1 in 5 longtime coal miners in Central Appalachia has black lung — the highest level recorded in 25 years.
On April 1, the Trump administration fired most of the staff working on the program as part of massive layoffs at the Department of Health and Human Services, The Washington Post previously reported. Many staffers were placed on administrative leave and told of their termination effective June 2.
On April 30, the administration temporarily reinstated 30 to 40 of the fired workers until June 2. Then, last week, Berger heard testimony from two West Virginia coal miners with black lung, who urged the judge to permanently restore the workers' jobs.
After Berger's ruling, the fired NIOSH workers received an email late Tuesday saying their 'reduction in force' notices were rescinded.
'You previously received a notice regarding the Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) upcoming reduction in force (RIF),' said the email, a copy of which was obtained by The Post. 'That notice is hereby revoked. You will not be affected by the upcoming RIF.'
Berger's decision comes as HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is set to testify Wednesday before the House and Senate about President Donald Trump's budget proposal, which calls for deeply slashing spending for many federal health programs.
Asked for comment on the ruling, HHS spokesman Andrew Nixon said in an email: 'Secretary Kennedy has been working hard to ensure that the critical functions under NIOSH remain intact. The Trump Administration is committed to supporting coal miners and firefighters, and under the Secretary's leadership, NIOSH's essential services will continue as HHS streamlines its operations.'
Sam Petsonk, a lawyer for the West Virginia coal miners with black lung, praised the decision but urged the administration to abandon other cuts to health programs across Appalachia.
'I'm glad to see the Administration already taking some initial steps in the direction of complying with the order,' Petsonk said in an email. 'America's coal miners deserve nothing less, and in fact they deserve a heck of a lot more.'
The order, he added, 'represents one very significant reversal of Trump's unconstitutional abandonment of Appalachia, but hopefully not the last.'
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