The Trump administration has reportedly implemented sweeping cuts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), targeting dozens of senior scientists and epidemiologists (commonly known as “disease detectives”) and even the agency’s entire Washington, D.C. office.
The Gateway Pundit previously reported that layoffs of federal employees officially began Friday as the U.S. government shutdown entered another tense phase.
Trump administration budget chief Russell Vought confirmed the sweeping reductions in a social media post.
“The RIFs have begun,” Vought announced on X, using the acronym for “Reductions in Force.”
The RIFs have begun.
— Russ Vought (@russvought) October 10, 2025
According to multiple media reports, layoff notices were sent late Friday evening, notifying affected CDC employees that their roles were being eliminated in connection with the ongoing federal government shutdown.
Among those impacted: senior researchers, members of the Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS), lab leadership fellows, and entire policy and administrative teams at CDC’s capital office, according to the New York Times.
Employees were informed that their positions had been deemed “unnecessary” or “duplicative.”
Among the casualties was the staff behind the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, the CDC’s in-house publication known for chronicling emerging health trends. Now, its operations have reportedly been “paused indefinitely.”
The layoffs also hit the Epidemic Intelligence Service, the CDC’s storied team of “disease detectives” who deploy globally to investigate outbreaks. Nearly 70 officers were reportedly notified that their services were no longer required.
More from The New York Times:
Several C.D.C. employees, all of whom spoke on condition of anonymity to avoid retaliation, described the mood Friday night as grim. Some noticed a pattern: This latest round of layoffs came on the eve of the Indigenous Peoples’ Day holiday weekend, while previous cuts to federal health agencies were announced on Valentine’s Day and April Fools’ Day.
The layoff notices, signed by Tom Nagy, the chief human capital officer at the Department of Health and Human Services, arrived with 10 attachments, including information about severance pay, how to file an appeal to overturn the layoffs and a “guide to career transition,” according to copies of the documents obtained by The New York Times.
A memo informed recipients that the action “does not reflect directly on your service, performance or conduct,” and that they would be placed on administrative leave without access to their offices, as of Friday, “unless directed otherwise by your leadership.”
Mr. Nagy concluded: “Leadership at H.H.S. appreciates your service.”
President Donald Trump announced last week that he would meet with Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought, a key architect of the Project 2025 blueprint, to determine which federal agencies, deemed by Trump as “political SCAM Democrat Agencies,” should face cuts and whether those cuts will be temporary or permanent.
Officials say the meeting with Vought will lead to mass layoffs, departmental closures, and funding freezes.
The President’s post signals that these changes may not simply be temporary austerity measures, but irreversible restructuring.
Trump wrote on Truth Social:
“I have a meeting today with Russ Vought, he of PROJECT 2025 Fame, to determine which of the many Democrat Agencies, most of which are a political SCAM, he recommends to be cut, and whether or not those cuts will be temporary or permanent.
“I can’t believe the Radical Left Democrats gave me this unprecedented opportunity. They are not stupid people, so maybe this is their way of wanting to, quietly and quickly, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! President DJT”
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