Trump Administration Announces Mass HHS Layoffs Affecting 10,000 Positions

The Trump administration announced plans to eliminate approximately 10,000 HHS positions across the department's component agencies, including the FDA, CDC, NIH, and HRSA. HHS Secretary Kennedy framed the cuts as eliminating redundancy and streamlining the department. The announcement did not follow the 60-day congressional notification requirement that Congress would later codify in Section 238 of H.R. 7148. The layoffs triggered bipartisan congressional opposition that accelerated the drafting of the FY2026 Labor-HHS appropriations bill.