Top US health agency permanently fires 600 CDC employees

August 21, 2025

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has permanently terminated 600 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) employees, many of whom were already on paid administrative leave following mass layoff proposals announced in April by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. These firings affect multiple divisions including the Division of Violence Prevention and come just two weeks after a shooting incident at CDC headquarters in Atlanta where a police officer was killed.

Who is affected

600 CDC employees who have been permanently fired
Workers in the Division of Violence Prevention and Office of Equal Employment Opportunity
CDC staff traumatized by the recent shooting at headquarters
Employees working on infectious disease response, including bird flu researchers
Staff researching environmental hazards and handling public record requests

What action is being taken

The Department of Health and Human Services is permanently terminating 600 CDC employees
Courts are handling legal challenges to the firings
A federal judge in Rhode Island has refined an earlier order to only block firings in six specific CDC divisions
Kennedy is implementing funding cuts and changes to immunization recommendations and regulations
Over 750 former and current HHS employees are formally protesting Kennedy's actions through a letter

Why it matters

The firings could impact critical public health functions including infectious disease response and violence prevention
The layoffs are occurring during a traumatic period following a shooting at CDC headquarters
The changes represent a significant restructuring of key U.S. health agencies (CDC, NIH, FDA)
Kennedy claims the cuts will save taxpayers $1.8 billion annually
Public health experts are concerned about Kennedy's approach to vaccines and public health infrastructure

What's next

No explicit next steps stated in the article

Read full article from source: BBC