600 CDC employees laid off as 700 others mistakenly receive termination notices
On Friday, some 1,300 employees at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) received notice they were being terminated as part of an agency-wide reduction in force. By Saturday, around 700 received a second communication saying they were reinstated. A spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) blamed a coding error for the mixup.
“The employees who received incorrect notifications were never separated from the agency and have all been notified that they are not subject to the reduction in force,” Andrew Nixon, director of communications for HHS, said in a statement to the press.
That said, roughly 600 people at the CDC have permanently lost their positions, according to the union representing federal workers. The union already filed a lawsuit in response to the federal government announcing permanent layoffs, something being done as part of the ongoing government shutdown—which the plaintiffs argue is illegal, as typically workers are furloughed.
In its response, HHS told the court it expects roughly 1,200 layoffs at HHS agencies in total, meaning the CDC now officially accounts for half that number. Whether a larger reduction in force is coming remains to be seen, as President Donald Trump said on Friday that he would be looking to eliminate “a lot” of jobs as the shutdown goes on.
Trump also threatened to ensure all cuts would be to programs that Democrats care about: “We figure they started this thing, so they should be Democrat-oriented,” Trump added. He did not offer specifics.
In total, the Trump administration confirmed it plans to eliminate an estimated 4,100 jobs from the federal government workforce, with HHS impacted along with at least six other agencies, including the departments of Homeland Security, Education, Energy, Housing, Commerce and the Treasury.
No end in sight
Currently there’s no deal on the table to fund government operations, as Republicans and Democrats in Congress remain deadlocked over the issue of Affordable Care Act subsidies, with the latter wanting to extend them. The subsidies were implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic to make insurance purchased through the Healthcare.gov marketplace more affordable.
Heading into the shutdown on Oct. 1, HHS released a contingency plan for minimalist operations, which included a comment that CDC notifications would likely be delayed, due to staffing furloughs. At the time, there was no mention of permanent cuts.
Chad is an award-winning writer and editor with over 15 years of experience working in media. He has a decade-long professional background in healthcare, working as a writer and in public relations.