Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced a major overhaul Thursday that will eliminate 10,000 full-time employees from his department.
Mr. Kennedy also said HHS will consolidate 28 divisions into 15, including a new Administration for a Healthy America, and it will cut the number of regional offices from 10 to five.
The restructuring will leave popular insurance programs such as Medicaid and Medicare intact, the secretary said, while reorienting agency missions toward ending chronic illness and eradicating environmental toxins.
“We aren’t just reducing bureaucratic sprawl. We are realigning the organization with its core mission and our new priorities in reversing the chronic disease epidemic,” Mr. Kennedy said. “This Department will do more — a lot more — at a lower cost to the taxpayer.”
The overhaul is Mr. Kennedy’s latest attempt to “Make America Healthy Again” as part of President Trump’s revamping of the federal government.
The new workforce cuts, along with prior early retirements and moves by the Department of Government Efficiency, will downsize HHS from 82,000 to 62,000 full-time employees, the department said.
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Mr. Kennedy, in a video explaining the moves, said it might be a “painful” transition for HHS, but he is “keenly focused on paring away excess administrators while increasing the number of scientists and frontline health providers so that we can do a better job for the American people.”
Mr. Kennedy is earning kudos for his focus on processed foods and general health, but the cuts will likely add to the chorus of critics who say some of the secretary’s views are counterproductive. Some health professionals want him to be more vocal about vaccination as measles outbreaks swirl through western states and other parts of the U.S.
Also, the administration recently announced the cancellation of billions of dollars of research grants, upsetting scientists who say it could cost lives. The department said much of the funding was for COVID-19 research that is no longer needed.
The restructuring complies with Mr. Trump’s executive order to optimize the federal workforce through DOGE, a government-cutting initiative led by billionaire Elon Musk.
Mr. Trump and Mr. Musk say the government is bloated and rife with fraud.
Democrats and others say DOGE’s slash-and-burn tactics are cutting critical services and mistreating middle-class federal workers. Critics also say the GOP is trying to free up money for tax-cut legislation that will benefit the wealthy.
HHS broke down the layoffs in major divisions, saying the Food and Drug Administration would see the biggest cut of 3,500 workers, though it insisted the downsizing would not impact drug, medical device and food reviewers, nor would they affect inspectors.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will lose 2,400 employees but remain focused on preparing for and responding to epidemics and outbreaks, the department said. It said the reduction could be considered a 1,400-person reduction because 1,000 people are joining the CDC from the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response as part of the consolidation.
The National Institutes of Health will reduce its workforce by 1,200 people by “centralizing procurement, human resources, and communications across its 27 institutes and centers,” HHS said, adding that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will cut 300 employees to reduce “minor duplication” across the agency without touching Medicaid and Medicare services.
Sen. Angela Alsobrooks, Maryland Democrat, said the cuts would be “dangerous and deadly.”
“I warned America that confirming RFK Jr. would be a mistake,” Ms. Alsobrooks said. “This move must be immediately reversed for the health and safety of the American people. I will do all I can to fight this.”
Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, New York Democrat, said that “when you fire people who prevent the spread of diseases like measles, America will get sicker.”
Mr. Kennedy said the restructuring would produce results.
“Over time, bureaucracies like HHS become wasteful and inefficient even when most of their staff are dedicated and competent civil servants,” he said. “This overhaul will be a win-win for taxpayers and for those that HHS serves.”
The creation of the Administration for a Healthy America will combine multiple agencies — the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health (OASH), Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), and National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).
