By I. Edwards HealthDay Reporter<\/b>
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WEDNESDAY, July 2, 2025 (HealthDay News) \u2014 A federal judge has stopped the Trump administration from implementing more layoffs at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), saying the job cuts likely went against the law.<\/p>\n
The decision came Tuesday from U.S. District Judge Melissa DuBose<\/a> in response to a lawsuit filed by attorneys general from 19 states and the District of Columbia, the Associated Press <\/em>reported.<\/p>\n DuBose said the layoffs caused \u201cirreparable harm\u201d and were likely \u201carbitrary and capricious.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe executive branch does not have the authority to order, organize, or implement wholesale changes to the structure and function of the agencies created by Congress,\u201d she added in her 58-page order.<\/p>\n Her ruling blocks any more layoffs or changes to the agency\u2019s structure while the lawsuit continues. HHS must report back to the court by July 11.<\/p>\n In a statement, HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon<\/a> said, \u201cWe stand by our original decision to realign this organization with its core mission and refocus a sprawling bureaucracy that, over time, had become wasteful, inefficient and resistant to change.”<\/p>\n Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr<\/a>. had already cut more than 10,000 workers<\/a> in March and merged 28 agencies into 15 as part of the administration\u2019s \u201cMake America Healthy Again\u201d plan, the AP <\/em>said.<\/p>\n Some layoffs were reversed after public outcry, including CDC cuts that affected workers tracking HIV<\/a>, hepatitis<\/a> and other serious diseases.<\/p>\n Tuesday\u2019s court ruling applies to workers in four key areas of HHS: the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; the Center for Tobacco Products within the Food and Drug Administration; the Office of Head Start within the Administration for Children and Families and employees of regional offices who work on Head Start matters; and the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, the AP <\/em>said.<\/p>\n In their lawsuit, state leaders said the cuts stripped away crucial services and pushed unnecessary costs onto states.<\/p>\n DuBose agreed, writing that states lost access to \u201cfunds, guidance, research, screenings, compliance oversight, data, and, importantly, the expertise and guidance on which they have long relied.\u201d<\/p>\n At a Senate hearing in May, Kennedy said there was \u201cso much chaos and disorganization\u201d inside HHS, the AP <\/em>noted. He conceded that mistakes had been made \u2014 and that up to 20% of fired workers might be reinstated.<\/p>\n More information<\/strong><\/p>\n Learn more about the role of the U.S. Health and Human Services Department<\/a>.<\/p>\n