Thousands of federal health workers targeted in job cuts

The Trump administration is cutting thousands of jobs at the Department of Health and Human Services, with a focus on probationary employees with two years or less experience.

Why it matters: The cuts, part of a deepening purge throughout the executive branch, included the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, potentially affecting disease surveillance and biomedical research.

Driving the news: Senior officials were told Friday morning that about 5,200 people on probationary employment, or recent hires, would be targeted, STAT reported.

• At least 1,300 jobs were targeted at the CDC's Atlanta headquarters, representing roughly one-tenth of the agency's workforce, WSB-TV reported.
• The cuts included members of the CDC's Epidemic Intelligence Service officers — a group known as the "disease detectives" that's on the front lines of public health responses, per CBS News.

"HHS is following the administration's guidance and taking action to support the president's broader efforts to restructure and streamline the federal government," Andrew Nixon, an HHS spokesperson, told Axios in a statement. "This is to ensure that HHS better serves the American people at the highest and most efficient standard."

• HHS wouldn't confirm specifics around any cuts.
• An Office of Personnel Management spokesperson said the probationary period is a continuation of the job application process and "not an entitlement for permanent employment."

Agencies have been given until 8pm on Tuesday to fire probationary workers, according to a source familiar with the process, though they can make case-by-case exceptions.

• The firings are already being challenged in court, with more suits likely to follow.

What they're saying: The reported cuts to CDC epidemiology staff are particularly alarming in light of the bird flu, said Richard Besser, former acting director of the agency and now CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

• "These are the people who go out and investigate each case and work with state and local health departments to identify the risks for infection and to keep track as to whether this could become the start of the next pandemic," Besser said. "By eliminating half of that crew, it puts us all at risk."
• "What we're seeing now is a tearing down of one of our institutions that is so incredibly important for protecting and promoting the health of people across our country," Besser said.

Emily Peck contributed