STAT+: What stripping civil service protections for thousands of federal workers will mean for HHS
Article excerpt
The Department of Health and Human Services has reclassified thousands of employees under a new employment designation that strips away civil service protections, making them significantly easier to terminate. The change affects HHS staff who directly shape policy at agencies including the NIH, CDC, and FDA. Workers previously shielded by civil service rules now lack those job protections, a shift that critics warn could allow rapid turnover of experienced personnel and politicize scientific agencies. The reclassification appears tied to Schedule F executive orders aimed at reducing federal workforce protections.
Thousands of Health and Human Services Department staff who shape policy, including on public health, federal health insurance programs, and health data privacy, have had their employment status changed to a designation that makes it easier for them to be fired, and thus makes them more vulnerable to political pressure from the White House.
The reclassification of roughly 8,000 employees across the federal government, outlined in an executive order President Trump issued late Wednesday, also impacts some National Institutes of Health workers who oversee grant funding.
On the whole, health policy experts said, the shift toward a more politicized workforce is part of a broader goal of the Trump administration to shift power away from Congress and toward the executive branch. The policy, known as “Schedule F,” dates back to Trump’s first administration and would create a new class of federal employees that are not political appointees, but could be fired at will.
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