Hundreds of agency employees have been reinstated at the HHS after mass layoffs at the department earlier this year, according to HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
The HHS has reinstated 722 workers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and 220 employees at the National Institutes of Health, Kennedy said during a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee meeting on Tuesday.
Additionally, the secretary said he returned more than 300 people to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, including for a program that provides care for first responders and survivors of the 9/11 attacks.
The hearing, ostensibly about the HHS’ budget for 2026, covered a range of topics, from cuts to NIH research grants to the firing of 17 members on a CDC panel on vaccine recommendations.
Kennedy’s comments came months after the HHS began a sweeping organization of the department, laying off thousands of workers in what HHS staffers say was a chaotic manner plagued by mistakes and poor communication.
“In some cases there have been gaps in our ability to perform our duties,” Kennedy told lawmakers. “They were doing important work that was critical.”
Several lawsuits have been lodged over the Trump administration’s restructuring, arguing the layoffs were conducted illegally and hinder the department’s ability to manage crucial health programs.
Still, Kennedy said terminated staffers were mainly involved in administrative work. Cuts were aimed to address redundancies in the department, like cutting down on external affairs personnel or consolidating offices that handled similar health issues, he said.
“The people who were let go were people who were not involved in primary care or in delivery of care,” Kennedy said. “They were redundant administrative offices that have been added to over the past eight years.”
Job cuts at most federal agencies are on hold due to a court order this spring. Affected employees are currently on administrative leave, and the department will make decisions on next steps if the injunction is lifted, Kennedy said.
