Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced plans to reduce the department’s workforce by 10,000 full-time employees as part of a major restructuring aimed at reshaping federal health agencies. This move comes in addition to the 10,000 employees who have already left the department voluntarily since President Donald Trump’s administration. The restructuring is expected to reduce HHS’s workforce by about a quarter, bringing the total number of employees to 62,000.
The HHS, a $1.7 trillion agency, oversees a range of critical areas, including vaccines, public health infrastructure, scientific research, and the regulation of food and tobacco products. It also manages government-funded health programs such as Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act, which serve millions of Americans, particularly low-income individuals, seniors, and those with disabilities. The job cuts will impact divisions that handle insurance for the poorest Americans, approve new drugs, and respond to disease outbreaks, including the Food and Drug Administration, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the National Institutes of Health.
Kennedy’s plan also involves the closure of five of HHS’s 10 regional offices, although the department insists that essential health services will remain unaffected. The department projects the cuts will save about $1.8 billion annually. As part of the reorganization, Kennedy is consolidating 28 current divisions into 15 new ones, which will centralize functions such as human resources, policy, and information technology. A new subdivision called the Administration for a Healthy America will combine several offices that address addiction, mental health, and occupational safety, aimed at improving coordination of health resources for low-income Americans.
While the restructuring seeks to streamline operations, critics argue that it could lead to delays in services and undermine the effectiveness of health programs. Experts point out that consolidating agencies with different functions may not yield the efficiency gains anticipated by the administration, and it could impact oversight, such as fraud prevention and healthcare program administration.
Kennedy, known for his stance on reducing corporate influence in health agencies, has also proposed reviewing the childhood vaccination schedule and reshaping immunization policy, which could affect vaccination rates in the U.S.
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