When Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ruled the Ministry of Health and Welfare in February, he promised “radical transparency,” and declared that “science and democracy flourished in a free and interrupted information.”
But when the Trump administration dismissed thousands of employees on Tuesday, the goal included people who delivered the Ministry of Health’s work with Americans.
Some of the employees were journalists, but many people were able to translate complex scientific research into accessible guidelines behind the stage of social media, newsletters, information campaigns, and personal volunteer activities, and to reach those who need the recommendations and state -of -the -art research in dozens of offices.
Their work includes drugs and food recalls, and seven people who are fired at the communication office of five HHS institutions accommodated in food and pharmacies, the disease control prevention center and the National Institute of Health’s communication offices explain the meaning of new research and prevention of new research and prevention of disease It included spreading action. According to LinkedIn’s posts, dismissal indicates that people who have communicated with the occurrence of infectious diseases were hit.
All seven people who talked to the New York Times said they lost most or all of their employees. Gillian Steelfisher, a major research scientist at Harvard Shaman Public Health School, explained that this is a “profound loss of public health and the health of public health and the public.”
“Good public health is a partnership with the public.” It is helpful for people to make decisions, protect them and loved ones, and basically do so. have You can talk with people. ”
Disposal is likely to derive a lawsuit, such as the executive of the executive. Opponents, including the Congress Democratic Party, argue that the administration does not have the authority to decide such a cut or restructuring without parliament.
Kennedy said he wanted to centralize communication within HHS. video Last week he insisted that the existence of more than 100 communication offices was an unacceptable example of bureaucracy. “I want to promise that we will do less,” he said in the video.
HHS was reduced on Wednesday when he commented on Wednesday, and he repeated the claims made by Kennedy’s video. The FDA, NIH and CDCs all requested opinions on the HHS line.
Some dismissed staff argued that centralized painting would damage the quality of information by sacrificing the topic expertise of long -term communication staff.
FDA spokesman Chanapa Tantibachai said, “I am complaining about the public until I was fired on Tuesday.” She said that the entire media office of the institution was fired. “I don’t use” radical transparency “as Kennedy’s secretary said,” he added. “It’s a complete opposite.”
The dismissal staff said they did not believe that their work could be duplicated with the same quality at the centralized office.
Alex Saint, a communication expert at the FDA drug evaluation and research center, recalled that in 2022, the FDA found that cough syrup was contaminated with diethylene glycol. Agency experts feared that the contaminated components would order in other countries where parents could not find cough and cold drugs, even if they did not reach US pharmaceutical manufacturers.
Her office communicated with a US manufacturer about the test protocol, warned the emergency room on the symptoms of diethylene glycol poisoning, and urged parents not to buy medicine abroad. Contaminated drugs did not reach the United States. Regardless of whether such actions prevented the domestic crisis, St. said they were essential.
She said she is not sure who will do the service now.
“There was no plan to switch,” she said.
DustIn Hays, who was fired as a science communication director in the NIH department, who is trying to prevent loss of vision, was feared that clinicians could not learn about new studies as a result of cuts, and that policymakers did not understand their value.
“I think this is a serious mistake for the government and I don’t realize how long it takes to build a company like NIH.
Drew Altman, the chairman of the non -profit health research group, pointed out that the Trump administration is cutting funds to state governments, narrowing the federal government’s role in public health. Dr. Steelfisher was similarly concerned about the influence of the state level.
“The danger now is that all state governments can recreate wheels now,” said Dr. Steelfisher.
