Leading Health Officials Put on Leave as HHS Terminates 10,000 Employees
Senior officials at the National Institutes of Health and the Food and Drug Administration have been put on leave.
On April 3, automated emails from Marrazzo and several other officials within the National Institutes of Health (NIH) confirmed their leave status.
This group also includes Dr. Diana Bianchi, director of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, and Vence L. Bonham Jr., acting deputy director of the National Human Genome Research Institute, who had previously been the agency’s top official after the director’s departure.
Marrazzo assumed leadership of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in 2023, approximately nine months after Fauci’s resignation. Bianchi has held her position since 2016, while Bonham has been with the research institute since at least 2005, according to his research publications.
Julia Tierney, a high-ranking official at the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, is also on leave, as noted in an automated message, along with Dr. Peter Stein, director of the FDA’s Office of New Drugs, who confirmed this in an email to The Epoch Times.
The center is responsible for reviewing vaccines, while the office supervises the safety and efficacy of medications.
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The officials remain listed on their agency websites as holding their positions as of Thursday.
Neither the National Human Genome Research Institute nor Bonham responded to requests for comment. An assistant for Bianchi and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, which gained prominence due to Fauci’s frequent public appearances during the COVID-19 pandemic, directed inquiries to the NIH. An NIH spokesperson referred inquiries to HHS, who opted not to comment on the officials’ employment status.
Previously, HHS stated it would terminate approximately 3,500 FDA employees, 2,400 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention employees, 1,200 NIH employees, and 300 personnel from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
In an email to The Epoch Times on Thursday, an HHS spokesperson indicated that the first step in the reorganization involved announcing job cuts and restructuring, followed by the implementation of the layoffs impacting around 10,000 employees.
“HHS leaders focused personnel reductions on redundant or unnecessary administrative roles,” the spokesperson stated.
“These invitations are voluntary, and individuals may choose to accept or decline,” the spokesperson mentioned. “Secretary Kennedy and the Department remain firmly committed to ensuring that American Indian and Alaska Native communities receive timely, quality healthcare.”
When asked about the number of officials receiving these offers, how many accepted, and how many declined, the spokesperson did not provide a response.
“I was offered a ‘reassignment’ in ‘patient affairs’… or termination (after administrative leave),” he recounted. “I found the offer ridiculous and thus opted for administrative leave instead.”
