At least 600 CDC employees are getting final termination notices, union says
The notices went out this week and many people have not yet received them, according to the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents more than 2,000 dues-paying members at CDC.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on Wednesday did not offer details on the layoffs and referred an AP reporter to a March statement that said restructuring and downsizing were intended to make health agencies more responsive and efficient.
AFGE officials said they are aware of at least 600 CDC employees being cut.
But 'due to a staggering lack of transparency from HHS,' the union hasn't received formal notices of who is being laid off,' the federation said in a statement on Wednesday.
The permanent cuts include about 100 people who worked in violence prevention. Some employees noted those cuts come less than two weeks after a man fired at least 180 bullets into the CDC's campus and killed a police officer.
'The irony is devastating: The very experts trained to understand, interrupt and prevent this kind of violence were among those whose jobs were eliminated,' some of the affected employees wrote in a blog post last week.
On April 1, the HHS officials sent layoff notices to thousands of employees at the CDC and other federal health agencies, part of a sweeping overhaul designed to vastly shrink the agencies responsible for protecting and promoting Americans' health.
Many have been on administrative leave since then — paid but not allowed to work — as lawsuits played out.
A federal judge in Rhode Island last week issued a preliminary ruling that protected employees in several parts of the CDC, including groups dealing with smoking, reproductive health, environmental health, workplace safety, birth defects and sexually transmitted diseases.
But the ruling did not protect other CDC employees, and layoffs are being finalized across other parts of the agency, including in the freedom of information office. The terminations were effective as of Monday, employees were told.
Affected projects included work to prevent rape, child abuse and teen dating violence. The laid-off staff included people who have helped other countries to track violence against children — an effort that helped give rise to an international conference in November at which countries talked about setting violence-reduction goals.
'There are nationally and internationally recognized experts that will be impossible to replace,' said Tom Simon, the retired senior director for scientific programs at the CDC's Division of Violence Prevention.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
29 minutes ago
- New York Post
HHS nixes California sex ed grant after refusal to drop ‘radical' gender lessons
An office within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) terminated a federal grant funding California's sex education program aimed at preventing teen pregnancy and the spread of sexually transmitted diseases after the West Coast state reportedly refused to remove 'radical gender ideology' from its curriculum, Fox News Digital exclusively learned Thursday. 'California's refusal to comply with federal law and remove egregious gender ideology from federally funded sex-ed materials is unacceptable,' Andrew Gradison, acting assistant secretary at the Administration for Children and Families, said in comment provided to Fox News Digital Thursday. 'The Trump Administration will not allow taxpayer dollars to be used to indoctrinate children. Accountability is coming for every state that uses federal funds to teach children delusional gender ideology.' Advertisement The Administration for Children and Families, an office under HHS' umbrella that funds state, local and tribal organizations to provide support for families such as child care, announced Thursday morning that it was terminating the funding to California's Personal Responsibility Education Program (PREP) grant. The PREP program aims to educate California's youth, ages 10–19, on preventing teen pregnancy and the spread of sexually transmitted infections, which the state says has led to students in the program 'delaying sexual activity, increasing condom or contraceptive use for sexually active youth, or reducing number of sexual partners.' 4 An office within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) terminated a federal grant funding California's sex education program aimed at preventing teen pregnancy and the spread of sexually transmitted diseases after the West Coast state reportedly refused to remove 'radical gender ideology' from its curriculum. REUTERS 'Program services are engaging, nonjudgmental, medically accurate and tailored to the unique needs of youth participants and their communities,' the PREP website states. 'Services are offered in a range of settings, including schools, juvenile justice facilities, homeless shelters and foster care group homes. CA PREP activities also include community engagement and promotion of clinical linkages to youth-friendly reproductive health services.' Advertisement PREP specifically aims to assist those who 'reside, attend school or receive reproductive health services in a high-need geographic area; are homeless and/or runaway; attend an alternative or continuation school; are in or emancipated from foster care; are in the juvenile justice or probation system; identify as LGBTQ; are receiving treatment for mental health or substance abuse issues; have special needs; live in migrant farmworker families or are expectant/parenting female youth up to age 21.' The PREP grant has been under scrutiny by the Trump administration since at least March, when the Administration for Children and Families requested program leaders send copies of its curriculum and other relevant course materials to them for review. The probe was initially launched to ensure the state's sexual education programming is medically accurate and age-appropriate. 4 The Administration for Children and Families, an office under HHS' umbrella that funds state, local and tribal organizations to provide support for families such as child care, announced Thursday morning that it was terminating the funding to California's Personal Responsibility Education Program (PREP) grant. AFP via Getty Images Previous grant funding shows California's PREP program received just under $6 million from the federal government in fiscal year 2022. All in, California could lose $12.3 million in funding that it has not yet received, covering multiple years, according to HHS. Advertisement The Administration for Children and Families reviewed the program's curriculum and other teaching materials, and found a lengthy list of subjects and language deemed to fall outside the program's 'authorizing statute,' in particular references to 'gender ideology.' In June, Fox News Digital reported Administration for Children and Families gave the sex education program a 60-day deadline to remove all references to gender identity or face potential termination of its funding. The 60-day deadline just ran dry, with the Administration for Children and Families subsequently terminating the funding and sending a letter to Sydney Armendariz, the division chief of Maternal Child, and Adolescent Health Division at the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), and Matthew Green, the deputy director of the Center for Family Health at CDPH, declaring it was 'terminating all California State Personal Responsibility Education Program (PREP) awards and suspending the funding effective August 21, 2025.' The letter sent Thursday reported that following the Administration for Children and Families' June request to remove what it said was radical gender ideology from PREP teachings, California refused in a letter of its own. 4 The PREP grant has been under scrutiny by the Trump administration since at least March, when the Administration for Children and Families requested program leaders send copies of its curriculum and other relevant course materials to them for review. AFP via Getty Images Advertisement 'CDPH will not make any such modifications at this time for several reasons,' the California Department of Public Health said in a letter to ACF earlier this week, according to HHS. 'The listed reasons were: 1) PREP materials had already been reviewed and approved by ACF; 2) the materials are medically accurate; 3) the gender ideology content is relevant to purposes identified in the authorizing statute, specifically the adult preparation subjects listed at 42 U.S.C. § 713(b)(2)(C); and 4) ACF does not have authority to take an enforcement action.' Among the materials Administration for Children and Families found amid its review of the curriculum was a lesson for middle school-aged students that sought to introduce them to the concepts of transgenderism, Fox News Digital previously reported. 'We've been talking during class about messages people get on how they should act as boys and girls—but as many of you know, there are also people who don't identify as boys or girls, but rather as transgender or gender queer,' the lesson states to students. 'This means that even if they were called a boy or a girl at birth and may have body parts that are typically associated with being a boy or a girl, on the inside, they feel differently.' Other flagged lessons in the materials included curriculum for high school-aged students with instructions on what it means to be 'nonbinary' and language that informed students 'gender-identity' is 'essentially a social status.' 4 California could lose $12.3 million in funding that it has not yet received, covering multiple years, according to HHS. Christopher Sadowski 'In a disturbing and egregious abuse of federal funds, California has been using taxpayer money to teach curricula that could encourage kids to contemplate mutilating their genitals, 'altering their body… through hormone therapy,' 'adding or removing breast tissue,' and 'changing their name.' It instructed teachers to 'remind students that some men are born with female anatomy,'' HHS said in a Thursday press release of the teachings. The Administration for Children and Families also had raised concerns over materials for teachers within the program, including lessons on avoiding misgendering individuals. Advertisement 'All people have a gender identity,' the teacher training materials stated, Fox Digital previously reported. It also instructed educators to refer to people who identify with their sex 'assigned at birth' as 'cisgender,' and added that those who are not 'cisgender' may identify as 'non-binary, agender, bigender, genderfluid, (or) genderqueer.' Gradison's letter to the California health leaders Thursday underscored that Administration for Children and Families' decision to terminate the grant is final unless California health leaders file an appeal. 'This is the final decision of the Administration for Children and Families,' the letter reads. 'It shall be the final decision of the Department unless, within 30 days after receiving this decision, you submit a notice of appeal to the Departmental Appeals Board (DAB).'
The Hill
29 minutes ago
- The Hill
CDC finalizes roughly 600 layoffs
The cuts are across the agency, including the Division of Violence Prevention, equal employment opportunity, open records law compliance, the Office of Financial Resources, the offices of the chief information and chief operating officers, and more, according to union officials. The cuts were expected after U.S. District Judge Melissa R. DuBose, a Biden appointee, scaled back the scope of an initial ruling finding broad layoffs unlawful. DuBose specified that certain subagencies and programs were blocked off from layoffs, including the National Center for HIV, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and Tuberculosis Prevention; the Division of Reproductive Health; and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. This left unnamed subagencies open to layoffs. An HHS spokesperson confirmed the layoffs when contacted by The Hill, noting the staff reductions are the final piece of the process that began in March as part of President Trump's Department of Government Efficiency executive order. The AFGE blasted the timing of the firings, taking place so soon after the fatal shooting that occurred at the CDC's offices in Atlanta. 'HHS [Department of Health and Human Services] has shown that it does not have the organizational or operational capacity to take over the support functions that the agency had before these firings. This reduction in force was operationally a mess. They have shown they are in no way prepared to support CDC when America needs it most,' the union said in a statement. The firings add to the anger among HHS employees, who say Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has undermined their work with his rhetoric against vaccines and public health workers. More than 750 current and former employees sent Kennedy a letter on Wednesday calling on him to stop 'spreading inaccurate health information' and do more to protect public health professionals in the wake of the shooting.
CBS News
39 minutes ago
- CBS News
Are you aware if the food you're eating is ultra-processed? The answer could make all the difference for your health
An alarming look at the foods consumed by families across America: A recent study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reveals that most Americans get more than half of their daily calories from ultra-processed foods, and that's leading to some serious health issues. CBS News Miami visited a South Florida family's kitchen with a nutritionist to gather information that can help you live a better life. Katrina and Charles Winters spend a lot of time in their kitchen. They homeschool their daughter, preparing all her daily meals and run a meal service for their employees. "Most of our food is pretty natural, whole food," said Katrina Winters. "I would say that we do have a snack cabinet that we keep pretty stocked for our daughter, also, I take her to school and I need to have things I can just grab and go in the car." "I travel a lot, so we do have to eat out quite a lot but when we are home we are cooking a most of our meals here," added Charles Winters. Founder of Essence Nutrition, dietitian Monica Auslander-Moreno, examined their pantry and refrigerator to highlight what they're doing well and areas for improvement. "This is a processed food; there is nothing that has been added to these hazel nuts, so that's great, but someone had to put them in this bag and that's okay," said Auslander-Moreno. "These are peanut butter and jelly dippers; this would be an ultra-processed food. It doesn't necessarily mean that I wouldn't eat them, but we would define them as a UPF," she continued. Ultra-processed foods (UPFs) are typically low in fiber and high in salt, sweeteners and unhealthy fats. The most common offenders include burgers, sandwiches, sweet baked goods, savory snacks, pizza and sweetened beverages. "The concern is that we are displacing the whole foods, the fruits and vegetables. Or the lightly processed foods, like the lightly frozen fruits and vegetables, and we are going to suffer from completely preventable diseases as a result of consuming these ultra-processed foods," Auslander-Moreno said. Studies have associated these types of foods with obesity, type 2 diabetes and heart disease. According to the new CDC report, from August 2021 to August 2023, individuals aged one year and older consumed an average of 55% of their total calories from ultra-processed foods. Children aged 1-18 consumed an even higher percentage, at 61.9%, compared to adults 19 and older, who averaged 53% CBS News Miami's nutrition expert emphasized that children often emulate their parents' behavior, as displayed by 5-year-old Jaco and his little brother, who can easily list their favorite healthy foods. "Cucumbers, avocados, and hearts of palm and chicken," Jaco exclaimed. "Hahah yeah, chicken." Auslander-Moreno told CBS News Miami that she asks people two questions to help them determine whether they're eating an ultra-processed food. "Two rules, so I ask people if their great, great, great grandmother or grandfather would recognize this food as indeed being food and if they could define that for you," she said. "[And] I would ask them if I give them all the food categories based on the MyPlate recommendations, 'Where would you put this food? Is it a fruit, is it a vegetable, how would you categorize it?' and then lastly, tell me where this food grew in the earth, or walked on the earth or swam in the ocean, and if those are really challenging questions to answer, it's likely a UPF." Auslander-Moreno shared her suggestions on how to replace common ultra-processed foods in your diet: Instead of hamburgers with frozen beef patties: Consider a salmon burger, cook it with olive oil and add lots of vegetables. Instead of sodas, opt for: Sparkling waters. You can also muddle cucumbers and citrus infuse them into sparkling or plain water. And instead of baked goods: Try baked apples with cinnamon. While technically baked, it's simply fruit with spice and satisfies that pie craving. You can top it with nuts or plain Greek yogurt. Experts also said to be cautious of products that seem healthy based solely on their packaging. Learn to read labels closely, and if you see an ingredient you don't recognize, research it to understand what you're consuming.
