AXIOS March 31, 2025
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. says sweeping layoffs and restructuring in the department will bring order to a bureaucracy he claims is in “pandemonium.” But experts say the overhaul also likely gives him far greater control over dozens of federal health agencies.
Why it matters: HHS has long functioned like a decentralized behemoth, with key decisions on hiring, grant funding, and public health priorities often in the hands of career staff and scientists.
The big picture: Along with cutting more than 10,000 jobs, HHS last week unveiled a plan centralize all human resources, IT, procurement and policy decisions, moving administrative control away from individual divisions.
- Central to this restructuring is the creation of the Administration...
Today's Sponsors
Today's Sponsor