CDC cuts expected to decimate Epidemic Intelligence Service
The Trump administration's cuts to the CDC's Epidemic Intelligence Service threaten public health preparedness, as layoffs of critical EIS officers may weaken responses to future health crises.
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The Trump administration's recent decision to cut federal civil service positions has significantly impacted the Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS), a key program within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Many EIS officers, who are crucial in investigating disease outbreaks and public health threats, were informed of their impending layoffs. The EIS, established in 1951, is renowned for training applied epidemiologists and has been instrumental in responding to health emergencies both domestically and internationally. Experts in the public health community have expressed alarm over these cuts, warning that they could severely diminish the nation's ability to respond to future health crises. Former CDC officials highlighted the program's historical importance, noting that EIS officers have played vital roles in past outbreaks, including the anthrax attacks in 2001 and the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. The loss of these highly trained professionals, many of whom hold advanced degrees, is expected to leave the U.S. and global public health landscape less prepared for emerging threats. The cuts are seen as part of a broader trend of diminishing federal health agency capacities, raising concerns about the future of public health preparedness.
- The Trump administration is cutting positions in the CDC's Epidemic Intelligence Service.
- EIS officers are critical for investigating disease outbreaks and public health emergencies.
- Experts warn that these layoffs will weaken the U.S. response to future health threats.
- The EIS has a long history of effective public health intervention since its establishment in 1951.
- The cuts reflect a broader trend of reduced capacity in federal health agencies.
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7 commentsI'd guess this is the main reason DOGE targeted this particular agency for extreme cuts (other sources reporting 50% [0]). It's the same reason DOGE is wiping out all the fed's new hires—because those are probationary, it's possible to fire them with less administrative work. It has zilch to do with competence or efficiency. It's outright anti-aligned with competence, in this case: this agency (EIS) hires–per that quoted paragraph–highly-skilled outsiders at far above public-sector wages. That they're easy to fire means there was a lot less dead-weight, to begin with, in this subgroup relative to the rest of the federal bureaucracy.
(Perhaps it's a good time to read up which other federal agencies hire under this Title 42).
These people are much more interested in creating a shallow facade of efficient small-government, than in putting in the actual hard work towards building one. Because this isn't efficiency; this is vandalistic looting!
[0] https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cdc-disease-detectives-doge-cut... ("CDC's "disease detectives" halved as part of DOGE cuts at health agencies")
It took about two years for the world to more or less return to normal when COVID struck. Instead of conservatives learning a lesson about that, they instead just declared COVID as fake, lied about vaccines, and reelected the demagogue that's partly responsible for the virus's wide spread in the US in the first place.
Frankly, it's tiring. I don't know why about half the country wants this.
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