Latest news with #CoalWorkersHealthSurveillanceProgram
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
HHS reinstates fired workers responsible for coal miner health protection
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reinstated nearly 200 workers who screen coal miners for black lung, an incurable progressive disease caused by long-term exposure to coal dust, following a federal judge's order Tuesday. U.S. District Judge Irene Berger issued a preliminary injunction halting the firings at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health's (NIOSH) Coal Workers Health Surveillance Program. Berger ordered the 'full restoration' of services for the program, which is congressionally mandated by the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969. The program offers health screenings for miners and allows researchers to identify disease trends across the nation. Miners who are diagnosed with black lung can transfer to a different part of the mine without a pay cut, under a provision called a Part 90 waiver. Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Wednesday confirmed the workers had been rehired. 'I reinstated 328 employees at NIOSH,' Kennedy said during a House Appropriations Committee hearing. 'A little over a third of them were in Morgantown, about a third were in Cincinnati and then the World Trade Center group, I also reinstated.' The program's employees were among the thousands of federal health workers put on administrative leave on April 1, with termination effective June 2, as part of HHS's reorganization efforts. Berger found that there 'is no dispute' that the congressionally mandated services are not currently being offered, 'and there is no testimony or plan offered explaining how they will resume. The only reasoning for their actions put forth by the Defendants is an effort to streamline efficiencies.' The case is a class action lawsuit brought by a veteran coal miner named Henry Wiley who argued the terminations endangered him and other miners. Berger wrote if the dismissals were allowed to go forward, 'thousands of miners will go without screening for black lung, and those with black lung will be deprived of access to the Part 90 transfer option.' Halting research that helps ensure effective, targeted and efficient preventative measures 'harms the public both by increasing the prevalence of black lung and by increasing the costs of preventative measures and of treatment and benefits,' Berger wrote. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
GOP lawmakers bring constituent concerns to RFK Jr. at budget hearing
A handful of Republican lawmakers on Wednesday brought up concerns about how the Trump administration's recent actions stand to affect their constituents at a budget hearing with Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. While welcoming to Kennedy, several GOP members of the House Appropriations Committee questioned the secretary on how recent moves by his department and President Trump's White House, such as efforts to discontinue the use of artificial food dye as well as plans to ban fluoride, would directly impact their districts. Tennessee Rep. Chuck Fleischmann (R) spoke on behalf of the snack food manufacturers in his district. The candy company Mars Inc. has a manufacturing plant in Fleischmann's district. 'Candidly, I represent many snack manufacturers,' Fleischmann said. 'We want to make sure that FDA has done due diligence to ensure the safety of these replacement colors.' Last month, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced plans for food makers to voluntarily phase out several petroleum-based food dyes, citing concerns they're linked to conditions like attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, obesity, diabetes and cancer. The agency has proposed vegetable-based dyes as replacements. 'I think these dyes are safe. They've been approved, but really trying to find substitutes — the costs we've seen estimate five to 10 times to try to fix that,' Fleischmann added. Rep. Riley Moore ( sought assurances from Kennedy that the administration would continue to reverse its firing of more than 100 National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) employees, with many employees having been at a Morgantown facility in Moore's district. 'This facility and the programs that administers are absolutely critical to West Virginia and to our nation's coal industry,' Moore said. He also sought a guarantee from Kennedy that the Coal Workers Health Surveillance Program and the Respirator Approval Program at NIOSH will be fully reinstated to which Kennedy responded in the affirmative. Other lawmakers spoke on behalf of those in their profession and how recent actions at HHS could influence their field. Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho), a longtime practicing dentist, expressed concerns over Kennedy's aims to eliminate fluoride from drinking water. He noted that on Tuesday, the FDA had announced plans to ban ingestible fluoride for children and pushed back on the characterization FDA Commissioner Marty Makary made of the products. Makary said in a statement that fluoride could kill beneficial bacteria in the gut in the same way that it kills bacteria on teeth. 'You don't prevent cavities by fluoride killing the bacteria in the mouth. What it does is make the enamel more resistant to decay. So I want to see the studies on this and where we're headed with this,' Simpson said, warning that if Kennedy succeeds in his aims of banning fluoride, the country will need 'a whole lot more dentists.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Epoch Times
14-05-2025
- Health
- Epoch Times
Judge Orders HHS to Restore Jobs in Health Monitoring Program for West Virginia Coal Miners
A West Virginia federal judge on Tuesday ordered the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to reverse the terminations of nearly 200 workers who oversee a health monitoring program for coal miners after they were laid off last month. Judge Irene C. Berger of the District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia granted a preliminary injunction compelling HHS to restore all personnel to the Respiratory Health Division of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in Morgantown, West Virginia. Workers in the division are responsible for screening and reviewing medical examinations submitted by outside providers to determine whether there is evidence that miners have developed a respiratory ailment called pneumoconiosis, more commonly known as black lung disease. 'Testing for, diagnosing, preventing, and researching black lung is a highly specialized field—it simply is not possible to transfer the duties of the RHD employees to others without a period of transition and training,' the judge wrote in her ruling. 'Losing the services of these experienced and dedicated employees is an aspect of the irreparable harm to the miners and the public that cannot and should not be ignored.' Berger ordered HHS to continue its Coal Workers Health Surveillance Program within NIOSH after finding the department lacked the authority to 'unilaterally cancel' it. Related Stories 5/14/2025 5/13/2025 Additionally, the judge ordered the restoration of a program called Part 90, which allows miners who present evidence of pneumoconiosis to transfer to less dusty jobs, without a reduction in pay, to protect them from continued exposure. Berger's decision comes after nearly 200 workers at the NIOSH facility were placed on administrative leave in April as part of restructuring within HHS. It's part of wider cost-cutting efforts by the Trump administration that have seen thousands of federal employees across various departments laid off. Berger did not specify in her order exactly how many of the jobs must be restored within the health division. Lawsuit Alleges Workers Left Without Critical Protections The ruling was issued in response to a lawsuit filed against HHS and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in April by Harry Wiley, a Raleigh County electrician who works in coal mines. According to the lawsuit, Wiley was diagnosed with black lung disease in November 2024. Federal law mandates that regular health screenings be made available to coal miners. Wiley argued the job cuts at the Respiratory Health Division meant NIOSH was unable to review applications or offer job transfers, which in turn left him and other miners without critical protections guaranteed under the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977. Berger agreed, writing in her ruling that 'uncontroverted evidence before the Court overwhelmingly establishes that the mandatory statutory duties cannot effectively be fulfilled without an injunction terminating' the job cuts. She ordered that, in the event of reorganization, there be no 'pause, stoppage or gap in the protections and services mandated by Congress in the Mine Act and the attendant regulations for the health and safety of miners.' Berger added that HHS failed to present evidence that employees with the qualifications necessary to operate the health monitoring unit screening for black lung exist elsewhere in HHS. HHS also presented no evidence that individual employees or groups of employees could be terminated without impacting NIOSH's ability to perform the mandatory duties set forth in the Mine Act and other regulations, she said. The judge gave Kennedy 20 days to submit written certification proving that HHS has complied with the court's order. The Epoch Times has contacted a spokesperson for HHS for comment. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The Hill
14-05-2025
- Health
- The Hill
HHS reinstates fired workers responsible for coal miner health protection
The Centers for Disease Control and Protection has reinstated nearly 200 workers who screen coal miners for black lung, an incurable progressive disease caused by long-term exposure to coal dust, following a federal judge's order Tuesday. U.S. District Judge Irene Berger issued a preliminary injunction halting the firings at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health's (NIOSH) Coal Workers Health Surveillance Program. Berger ordered the 'full restoration' of services for the program, which is congressionally mandated by the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969. The program offers health screenings for miners and allows researchers to identify disease trends across the nation. Miners who are diagnosed with black lung can transfer to a different part of the mine without a pay cut, under a provision called a Part 90 waiver. HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Wednesday confirmed the. workers had been rehired. 'I reinstated 328 employees at NIOSH,' Kennedy said during a House Appropriations Committee hearing. 'A little over a third of them were in Morgantown, about a third were in Cincinnati and then the World Trade Center group, I also reinstated.' The program's employees were among the thousands of federal health workers put on administrative leave on April 1, with termination effective June 2, as part of HHS's reorganization effort. Berger found that there 'is no dispute' that the congressionally mandated services are not currently being offered, 'and there is no testimony or plan offered explaining how they will resume. The only reasoning for their actions put forth by the Defendants is an effort to streamline efficiencies.' The case is a class action lawsuit brought by a veteran coal miner named Henry Wiley who argued the terminations endangered him and other miners. Berger wrote if the dismissals were allowed to go forward, 'thousands of miners will go without screening for black lung, and those with black lung will be deprived of access to the Part 90 transfer option.' Halting research that helps ensure effective, targeted, and efficient preventative measures 'harms the public both by increasing the prevalence of black lung and by increasing the costs of preventative measures and of treatment and benefits,' Berger wrote.
The Hill
14-05-2025
- Health
- The Hill
GOP lawmakers bring constituent concerns to RFK Jr. at budget hearing
A handful of Republican lawmakers on Wednesday brought up concerns about how the Trump administration's recent actions stand to affect their constituents at a budget hearing with Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. While welcoming to Kennedy, several GOP members of the House Appropriations Committee questioned the secretary on how recent moves by his department and President Trump's White House, such as efforts to discontinue the use of artificial food dye as well as plans to ban fluoride, would directly impact their districts. Tennessee Rep. Chuck Fleischmann (R) spoke on behalf of the snack food manufacturers in his district. The candy company Mars Inc. has a manufacturing plant in Fleischmann's district. 'Candidly, I represent many snack manufacturers,' said Fleischmann. 'We want to make sure that FDA has done due diligence to ensure the safety of these replacement colors.' Last month, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced plans for food makers to voluntarily phase out several petroleum-based food dyes, citing concerns they're linked to conditions like ADHD, obesity, diabetes and cancer. The agency has proposed vegetable-based dyes as replacements. 'I think these dyes are safe. They've been approved, but really trying to find substitutes — the costs we've seen estimate five to 10 times to try to fix that,' Fleischmann added. Rep. Riley Moore ( sought assurances from Kennedy that the administration would continue to reverse its firing of more than 100 National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) employees, with many employees having been at a Morgantown facility in Moore's district. 'This facility and the programs that administers are absolutely critical to West Virginia and to our nation's coal industry,' Moore said. He also sought a guarantee from Kennedy that the Coal Workers Health Surveillance Program and the Respirator Approval Program at NIOSH will be fully reinstated to which Kennedy responded in the affirmative. Other lawmakers spoke on behalf of those in their profession and how recent actions at HHS could influence their field. Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho), a longtime practicing dentist, expressed concerns over Kennedy's aims to eliminate fluoride from drinking water. He noted that on Tuesday, the FDA had announced plans to ban ingestible fluoride for children and pushed back on the characterization that FDA commissioner Marty Makary had made of the products. Makary said in a statement that fluoride could kill beneficial bacteria in the gut in the same way that it kill bacteria on teeth. 'You don't prevent cavities by fluoride killing the bacteria in the mouth. What it does is make the enamel more resistant to decay. So I want to see the studies on this and where we're headed with this,' Simpson said, warning that if Kennedy succeeds in his aims of banning fluoride, the country will need 'a whole lot more dentists.'
