The American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) is profoundly concerned by the extensive recent mass layoffs and terminations of senior leadership occurring throughout the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), including at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the National Institutes for Health (NIH). On April 1, an estimated 7,400 HHS employees received notices of dismissal as part of mandated reductions in force (RIF). These abrupt and widespread terminations threaten to permanently disrupt crucial scientific, medical, and educational initiatives, and have put American scientific progress, competitiveness, and security into serious jeopardy.
ASHG stands in strong support of the scientific community at this time, including the researchers, health professionals, and public servants who have dedicated their lives to ensuring our nation’s health. Their expertise and dedication have transformed America’s biomedical research enterprise, revolutionizing healthcare and saving countless lives. The loss of these highly skilled, dedicated professionals working to address pressing scientific and health issues like Parkinson’s disease, children’s health, and infectious disease will have lasting repercussions on the scientific workforce, the health of all Americans, and the nation’s ability to respond to emerging health crises or technological developments.
The United States has long been a beacon of scientific innovation, thanks to robust investment in research and a brilliant, committed workforce dedicated to improving human health. The recent and ongoing eliminations of thousands of positions across HHS agencies, whether researchers, doctors, or professionals in communications, policy, education and administration, has disrupted this momentum, putting decades of scientific progress at risk and creating workforce instability that will dissuade early-career professionals from pursuing careers in public service, or even research as a whole. While ASHG recognizes that there are always opportunities to reevaluate agency organization and mission, such expansive reductions in force without considered input from experts will have wide-reaching and long-lasting consequences for all Americans.