Trump Administration Further Eviscerates the FDA Through Mass Layoffs
Washington, D. C, – The Department of Health and Human Services announced mass layoffs Thursday, including a decrease in the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) workforce by approximately 3,500 full-time employees. As of early this year, the FDA employed about 20,000 people. The total downsizing could be as much as 25% of the agency’s workforce.
Public Citizen Health Research Group Director Dr. Robert Steinbrook issued the following statement.
“The Trump administration and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. continue to undermine the FDA. Before the latest evisceration of the FDA workforce, staff already were demoralized, undervalued and struggling to meet product review deadlines.
“A weakened FDA increases the chances that more unsafe drugs and medical devices will be marketed and that all of us will suffer preventable diseases. Marty Makary, the newly confirmed FDA Commissioner, must stand-up for the integrity of the FDA and push back against the gutting of the agency.”