Rifs during government shutdown hurt Americans and weaken communities

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: [email protected]

New mass federal layoffs during the government shutdown hurt Americans and weaken communities

While the measles outbreak continues to sicken children, the bird flu continues to wreak havoc on our nation’s farm communities, and the Ebola outbreak spreads in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Trump Administration continues to undermine the ability of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to keep  Americans, and the international community,  safe from preventable health threats. The illegal slashing of more than 1,000 employees at the CDC on Friday, on top of the previous RIFs at the country’s top health security agency, is already having serious consequences. Even if the rumors are true that the administration is now walking back many of these firings, the harm caused by this action remains.

For example…

• Infectious Disease guidance
  1. Healthcare facilities and practitioners, parents, schools and local public health officials already do not have access to the professional and credible expert guidance they rely upon to counter and respond to current infectious diseases outbreaks. These diseases are spreading at rates that will only accelerate without the disease control detectives who work to identify,  control and eventually extinguish these outbreaks.  
• Respiratory virus tracking and immunization guidance
  1. A lack of people and systems tracking respiratory viruses and issuing immunization guidance are hindering the ability of many families to do day-to-day things like go to work, school or even for our kids to play with their friends.
• Health information sharing
  1. If your representative or senator is looking to understand a public health threat or needs information on how to prevent one, no one is now there to help them.  
• Forecasting of disease outbreaks and serious threats  
  1. Just as meteorologists prepare us for potential weather patterns seasons ahead, so does CDC’s team tasked with forecasting outbreaks. Without them, we are blind to the next disease attack and cannot address it until it is too late to substantially save lives.
• Suicide researchers
  1. Mental health has been identified as a top priority of the administration. Eliminating the staff who have studied and implemented critical intervention programs to stem the growing tide of suicides in the U.S., including among our veterans, is nonsensical.

The health of our communities, families and neighbors is threatened as the administration continues to undermine the ability of our nation’s federal health agencies to protect the nation from ongoing serious health threats both domestically and globally. Firing those on the front lines of keeping us safe and protecting our communities from all dangers to public health is outrageous and puts us all at risk.

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The American Public Health Association champions optimal, equitable health and well-being for all. With our broad-based member community and 150-year perspective, we influence federal policy to improve the public’s health. Learn more at www.apha.org.