HHS layoffs resume after Supreme Court decision

HHS resumed workforce reductions on July 14 after the U.S. Supreme Court greenlit President Donald Trump’s executive order to reorganize and reduce staff across the federal government, Bloomberg reported July 14.

A July 14 email sent to employees from the HHS Office of Human Resources, obtained by Bloomberg, said that the agency was permitted to move forward with “a portion” of its reduction in force. “Accordingly, you are hereby notified that you are officially separated from HHS at the close of business on July 14, 2025,” the email said.

It is not clear how many staff, or which departments they worked for, received the emails, Bloomberg reported.

HHS, a federal agency, was not explicitly listed in the 17-page July 8 ruling, which  suspended a May 22 preliminary injunction that blocked President Trump’s executive order  directing the federal agency reorganization and workforce reductions.

In late March, HHS shared plans to lay off 10,000 full-time employees as part of a “dramatic restructuring.” In early April, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. acknowledged  possible error in the firings, and suggested that around 20% of affected staff could have their roles reinstated.

On July 1, U.S. District Judge Melissa DuBose for the District of Rhode Island granted a preliminary injunction preventing the Trump administration from reducing staff in the CDC, Center for Tobacco Products, the office of Head Start and Head Start employees in regional offices, and the office of the assistant secretary for planning and evaluation. 

A spokesperson for HHS told Bloomberg that all HHS employees laid off earlier this year have been separated from the agency officially, except staff affected by Ms. Dubose’s order.
Becker’s has reached out to HHS for comment and will update this story should more information become available.