Trump administration begins mass layoffs at health agencies

The Trump administration has fired staff at U.S. health agencies including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Food and Drug Administration and National Institutes of Health, as it embarked on its plan to cut 10,000 health jobs, according to sources familiar with the situation and a health official.

The cuts are part of a broad plan by President Donald Trump and billionaire ally Elon Musk to shrink staffing levels in federal departments and agencies.

Brian King, head of the FDA's Center for Tobacco Products, was fired, according to an email sent by King to FDA staff seen by Reuters.

Peter Stein, the director of the Office of New Drugs in the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research division, resigned on Tuesday, according to one source familiar with the matter.

King and Stein's exits adds to top leadership departures across the FDA's divisions including drugs, food, vaccines, medical devices and tobacco products. Staff have also been leaving and some employees reviewing products say they are struggling to meet their deadlines.

An FDA employee said staff had to present their badges at the building entrance and those who had been fired were given a ticket and told to return home, according to one source.

Other fired staff received emails Tuesday morning that said their terminations did not reflect on their service, performance or conduct, and that they would be placed on administrative leave immediately, according to an email seen by Reuters.

At the CDC, fired staff worked at the National Center for Environmental Health, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, and National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, according to another source.

The cuts at NCIRD included at least one person working on the federal response to measles outbreaks, the source said.

Officials at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services were not immediately available for comment.