U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono, alongside 33 Senate colleagues, has addressed a letter to the Trump administration in response to the recent dismissal of tens of thousands of federal health workers. These layoffs have raised concerns about their potential impact on the health and well-being of Americans, particularly affecting seniors, children, and people with disabilities.
Led by Senators Mark Warner, Bernie Sanders, and Chuck Schumer, the letter criticizes the administration's approach. "Your actions continue to show a reckless disregard for the health and well-being of American families, most significantly for underserved communities. You claim this ‘reduction in force’ will ‘make America healthy again.’ But firings of this scale will do the exact opposite," the senators expressed.
The letter was sent to Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), as the department begins disbanding entire agencies. These agencies include the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Administration for Children and Families. Many employees were unexpectedly informed of their terminations when attempting to enter the workplace.
The letter continues by challenging the administration on transparency. "You continue to deny visibility to the American public, despite your oft-repeated commitment to ‘radical transparency.’ You have promised that HHS will do more for the American people, at a lower cost to the taxpayer, yet you have not provided anything to substantiate these claims, despite repeated requests from Congress to do so."
The letter highlighted several areas where the layoffs are likely to have severe effects. These include harm to vulnerable communities, challenges in child protection, the affordability and safety of child care, increased backlogs in developing treatments, weakened access to primary care, and neighborhoods becoming unprepared for public health issues. The letter also mentions exacerbating the opioid crisis and impacting access to mental health services.
In addition to Senators Hirono, Warner, Sanders, and Schumer, the letter was endorsed by a host of other senators, including Angela Alsobrooks, Lisa Blunt Rochester, Tammy Baldwin, Cory Booker, Michael Bennet, Richard Blumenthal, and several others.
The full text of the letter is available for public view.