Donald Trump administration looking to slash $40 billion from US health department budget: Report

The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump is looking to cut some $40 billion in funding from its Department of Health and Human Services, the Washington Post reported on Wednesday, citing a preliminary budget document it had obtained.

This cut would represent roughly one third cut of the health department's discretionary spending, it said.

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As per a report in the Washington Post, the HHS budget draft, known as a “passback,” shows how the Trump administration plans to reshape the federal health agencies that oversee food and drug safety, manage the nation’s response to infectious-disease threats and drive biomedical research.The 64-page documentcalls not only for cuts, but also a major shuffling and restructuring of health and human service agencies. The administration already hasdownsized HHSby about one-fourth of its workforce, with about 20,000 imminent departures since Trump took office. TheCenters for Disease Control and Preventionstaff who worked on programs toprevent drowningand gun violence, improve worker safety and test for sexually transmitted illnesses and hepatitis were among those laid off. Read More | Indian-origin Reshma Kewalramani among Time magazine's 100 most influential people: Who is she National Institutes of Healthstaffers who specialize in managing scientific funding have been ordered to terminate contracts and cancel hundreds of grants that fund research on topics such as vaccine hesitancy, transgender health and covid.

HHS had a discretionary budget of about $121 billion in fiscal 2024, but under the Trump administration’s preliminary outline, it would see a decrease to $80 billion. Read More | Trump 'trying to drive a knife' through ESA? US proposes allowing harmful human activities in endangered species habitats

The proposed cuts are aimed at some of the prevention-focused health-care efforts HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has said he wants to prioritize, said Anand Parekh, chief medical adviser at the Bipartisan Policy Center, a Washington, D.C., think tank. Disclaimer: This story has been published from a news agency feed with minimal edits to adhere to WION's style guide. The headline may have been changed to better reflect the content of the story or to make it more suitable for WION audience.