Health Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. announced Thursday that he is overhauling his department from the ground up, a restructuring that will see the elimination of nearly a quarter of the workforce, including 10,000 layoffs.
This announcement comes at a time when the United States is facing a major health crisis with the resurgence of measles, a serious and highly contagious disease that has infected more than 380 people and caused two deaths, the first recorded in the country in a decade.
According to the plan of Health Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr., who has been heavily criticized by health professionals for his handling of this epidemic, approximately 10,000 people will be laid off. Some 10,000 other positions will be eliminated through voluntary departures or early retirement, according to a press release. The ministry's workforce will be reduced from 82,000 full-time employees to 62,000.
The layoffs affect various departments within the ministry and the agencies it oversees, including those responsible for responding to epidemics and approving new drugs.
– Cuts in the federal apparatus-
These are the latest cuts to the federal system announced by the government of Donald Trump, who has been carrying out mass layoffs since returning to power in January, often contested in court.
The restructuring announced Thursday also includes reducing the number of departments within the ministry from 28 to 15 and closing half of its regional branches.
According to the press release, all these measures should allow for savings of approximately $1.8 billion per year - or 0.11% of the annual budget of the Ministry of Health, which is responsible for the health of the more than 340 million inhabitants of the United States.
"This overhaul will be a win-win solution for taxpayers," assures Robert Kennedy Jr., who took the reins of the department in mid-February, promising to tackle the institutions that "steal health" from Americans.
"We are not just reducing the bureaucratic proliferation" of the ministry, "we are reorienting the organization towards its core mission and our new priorities to reverse the epidemic of chronic diseases," he assured.
– “MAHA” –
This former environmental lawyer is the leading figure in a movement called "Make America Healthy Again," a slogan modeled on Donald Trump's famous MAGA ("Make America Great Again").
The reform is intended to allow the ministry to focus its efforts on combating chronic diseases such as obesity, through "healthier food, clean water and the elimination of toxic substances from the environment."
Many health professionals and scientists opposed RFK Jr.'s nomination, particularly because of his anti-vaccine stance. They have recently expressed concern about his recent statements, which range from downplaying the severity of the measles epidemic to promoting alternative remedies, most of which have not been proven effective.
Several experts have also highlighted the risk of neglecting research into infectious diseases and their surveillance, at a time when the number of threats in this area continues to increase.
"The list of diseases we're worried about has really grown incredibly," Jennifer Nuzzo, a professor of epidemiology at Brown University, said recently, referring to the widespread circulation of avian flu, which has raised fears of a potential new pandemic.
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