The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HSS) on Wednesday canceled around $12 billion in federal grants to states that were allocated during the COVID-19 pandemic, Reuters reported.
The grants were being used to track, prevent and control infectious diseases, including measles and bird flu, as well as track mental health services and fund addiction treatment.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul said the Trump administration notified her office it intended to cut over $300 million in funding for the state's Department of Health, Office of Addiction Supports and Services and Office of Mental Health. She vowed in a statement to fight "tooth and nail" against federal attempts to withhold funding.
City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, Finance Chair Justin Brannan and Health Chair Lynn Schulman on Thursday said the funding claw back equates to about a $100 million cut to the city's public health system.
“These cuts are not just numbers on a spreadsheet—they represent real harm to real people," the three officials said in a joint statement. "They mean fewer resources to combat the opioid epidemic, reduced access to mental health care, and weakened defenses against chronic preventable diseases like measles. And let’s be clear: no one will be immune from the fallout, not even those who supported Trump. When public health infrastructure is gutted, every New Yorker is put at risk."
In addition, HSS on Thursday said it will reduce its total workforce by 20,000 people; consolidate 28 divisions to 15; and will decrease its 10 regional offices to five.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration will also decrease its workforce by approximately 3,500 full-time employees, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will cut its workforce by approximately 2,400 employees, with a focus on returning to its core mission of preparing for and responding to epidemics and outbreaks, according to a HSS factsheet.
“Over time, bureaucracies like HHS become wasteful and inefficient even when most of their staff are dedicated and competent civil servants,” Secretary Robert Kennedy said. “We aren't just reducing bureaucratic sprawl. We are realigning the organization with its core mission and our new priorities in reversing the chronic disease epidemic."
