‘It’s a massacre’: CDC battered by government shutdown firings

WASHINGTON — The White House’s mass firing of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention staff on Friday has decimated offices related to injury prevention, respiratory disease surveillance, and chronic disease, according to four people familiar with the cuts. 

Overall, the White House is expected to cut between 1,100 and 1,200 employees at the Department of Health and Human Services, though it’s not yet clear how many will come from the CDC. HHS hasn’t released official numbers on the cuts, but most anecdotal reports related to health agency firings have centered around the CDC. The American Federation of Government Employees has challenged previous firings of federal workers and said Friday in a social media post that it was filing a lawsuit in response to overall government firings. AFGE did not respond to a request for comment on Saturday. 

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