The Trump administration has terminated hundreds of employees at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, including key public health roles. Among those affected were workers from the Laboratory Leadership Service, responsible for training public health laboratory staff and outbreak response. The firings were cited as being due to poor performance, despite many having excellent reviews. Another program, the Epidemic Intelligence Service, was also expected to see cuts, but as of now, no terminations have occurred. The termination process has been chaotic and lacking in transparency, with lists of employees designated as “must be retained” not appearing to be used in the firing decisions. The dismissals have caused concern for the future of public health, as many of those affected had a passion for the field. The cuts are part of a broader effort to reduce the size of the federal workforce, in line with the administration’s goal of restructuring and streamlining the government. The dismissals come in the context of broader cuts to the federal government under the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency, which has directed agencies to dismiss probationary employees. Since the directive, employees at other agencies, such as the Veterans Affairs and the Department of Transportation, have also received termination notices.
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