The Department of Health and Social Services, which has some 90,000 employees, has frozen most public communications since Tuesday.
Sarah L. Voisin/The Washington Post/Getty Images
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Sarah L. Voisin/The Washington Post/Getty Images
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services employees were asked to suspend all public communications on Tuesday.
NPR obtained a memo issued by Acting HHS Director Dr. Dorothy Fink to the heads of all the operational divisions of the agencyordering them to refrain from most external communications, such as the issuance of documents, directives, or opinions, until those documents can be approved by “a person appointed by the President.”
The action is “consistent with precedent,” according to the memo, and applies until February 1. The communications freeze was first reported by The Washington Post. This also includes public speaking and social media.
“I’m watching what’s happening as this administration comes in and puts its ducks in a row,” said one federal official, who spoke to NPR on the condition that he not be named for fear his job would be threatened . “I think it will be temporary. To what extent? That remains to be seen. There’s a lot of discussion going on right now.”
An HHS employee who spoke to NPR on condition of anonymity out of fear for his job said it was unclear whether his team would receive permission to release the information it had planned to release this week.
Dr. Georges Benjaminpresident of the American Public Health Association, said he gave the HHS team that issued the memo “the benefit of the doubt: They’re just trying to get their hands on the administration — it’s big government “. He found the note surprising and said it could create confusion.
He also claimed the pause could have been avoided if there had been a smoother transition between the Biden and Trump administrations.
There are 13 operating divisions at HHS, including the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), and the National Institutes of Health, as well as other lesser-known health agencies . Overall, HHS has one of the largest budgets in the federal government – $1.7 trillion a year – and employs about 90,000 people across these agencies.
Fink wrote in Tuesday’s memo that some exceptions would be made for communications affecting “critical health, safety, environmental, financial or national security functions” but that these would be subject to review. He also warned that any material or action inconsistent with the reconsideration request should be immediately withdrawn.
“HHS has imposed a pause on mass communications and public appearances that are not directly related to emergencies or essential to preserving health,” said Benjamin N. Haynes, director of consumer relations. media from the CDC Office of Communications, in a statement. “This is a short pause to allow the new team to establish a review and prioritization process. There are exceptions for announcements that HHS divisions consider mission critical, but they will be made on a case-by-case basis.”
When NPR attempted to reach CMS and FDA media contacts, they referred inquiries to HHS. Media contacts for the Health Resources and Services Administration and NIH did not respond to requests for comment.
The President of the Association of State and Territory Health Officials, Dr. Joseph Kanterwrote to NPR in a statement that his group’s assumption is that “the new administration is taking the time to assess the current public health landscape.” He added that he understands the pause in communication “will be short-lived and there is an expedited pathway to ensure critical information reaches clinicians and health officials in a timely manner.”
President Trump’s nominee to head HHS, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., will appear at his confirmation hearing next Wednesday. Her confirmation prospects by the Senate are not clear.
Will Stone and Carmel Wroth contributed reporting.