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In a sweeping cost-cutting initiative, approximately 80,000 federal employees at the Department of Health and Human Services received emails offering voluntary separation packages worth up to $25,000. These workers, who handle crucial responsibilities including disease research, food safety inspections, and Medicare and Medicaid administration, have until Friday at 5 p.m. to respond to the offer.
The voluntary separation proposal reached employees across multiple HHS divisions, including staff at the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Maryland’s National Institutes of Health and Food and Drug Administration. This widespread communication arrived just before agency leaders are expected to present their workforce reduction strategies.
Federal Worker Appears on MSNBC and Proves DOGE Hasn't Cut Enough Yet pic.twitter.com/yslcmmjxt8
— A Man Of Memes (@RickyDoggin) March 9, 2025
HHS, which manages an annual budget of roughly $1.7 trillion primarily dedicated to Medicare and Medicaid healthcare coverage, stands as one of the federal government’s most expensive agencies. When contacted on Sunday, HHS officials provided no immediate response to inquiries about the separation offer.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has previously suggested significant staffing reductions. While he hasn’t fulfilled his initial pledge to remove all 600 NIH employees, Kennedy recently expressed his intention to reduce the public health workforce. “I have a list in my head,” Kennedy said of potential firings at the agency. He said some workers “made really bad decisions” on nutrition guidelines.
DOGE HAS FED EMPLOYEES TERRIFIED
Many federal workers had side businesses while enjoying secure jobs. Now that they're being let go, they're freaking out.@WCdispatch_ @JakeJakeNY
GET RAV ON THE GO 24/7 👇 https://t.co/5L0hFRsz41 pic.twitter.com/e6P67OW4T1— Real America's Voice (RAV) (@RealAmVoice) February 13, 2025
The administration’s workforce reduction efforts, supported by billionaire Elon Musk, began earlier this year when federal employees received offers of deferred resignation with eight months of compensation. The initiative has already resulted in the termination of thousands of probationary employees across federal agencies, including HHS.
This latest attempt to decrease federal health personnel comes at a critical time, as the CDC assists with managing a severe measles outbreak in West Texas and New Mexico, while Congress debates significant Medicaid budget reductions. According to the email, interested HHS employees must contact their local human resources department to pursue the voluntary separation option.
