CDC Layoffs Raise Questions About the Future of Public Health Surveillance

On Friday, October 10, the White House cut over 1,000 CDC staff members across departments responsible for infectious disease surveillance, immunization and respiratory disease tracking, and public health emergency response. As of Monday morning, October 13, the Trump administration is rushing to reinstate the formerly terminated CDC employees.^1-3

Although the cuts were ultimately reversed, the threat alone underscores the vulnerability of the CDC’s critical programs and jeopardizes essential surveillance and public reporting efforts that are vital to national health security. Amid uncertainty and continuous changes to critical health agencies, the question becomes: How can pharmacists be effective health care pillars in their communities when they lack trustworthy data to track and respond to public health matters?

What is the Status of the CDC Cuts?

Continued cuts to federal health agencies and institutions, whether through removal of funding or manpower, have led to a series of ripple effects affecting the integrity of public health. The most recent layoffs to CDC staff, among other government agencies, garnered an uproar from top health officials and terminated workers, citing significant interruptions in public health surveillance and response.^1,2

“CDC is over. It was killed,” Demetre Daskalakis, MD, MPH, former director of the CDC’s National Center on Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, told MSNBC reporting. Daskalakis recently resigned to protest HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “This administration only knows how to break things. They have made America at risk for outbreaks and attacks by nefarious players. People should be scared.”²

The workforce cuts included individuals across CDC committees, including the Immunization and Respiratory Diseases Center, the Global Health Center, the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) team, the Epidemic Intelligence Service, and scientists working on responses to outbreaks of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo and measles in the US. Their termination was cited as a result of a “miscoding error” in an email notifying employees that their layoffs were rescinded.²

Specific concerns were raised about interruptions to the MMWR—referred to as the “voice of the CDC.” The series acts as the “primary vehicle for scientific publication of timely, reliable, authoritative, accurate, objective, and useful public health information and recommendations.” February 2025 marked the first time the MMWR missed 2 weeks of publishing due to the government “pause” on regulations, guidance, announcements, press releases, social media posts and website posts.^4,5

How do CDC Cuts Impact Pharmacists?

Interruptions to the MMWR and other CDC surveillance programs underscore a critical weakness in the nation’s public health infrastructure. Pharmacists—who are often the first point of contact for patients—rely on timely, evidence-based data from the CDC to guide vaccine administration, counsel on emerging infectious threats, and respond swiftly to community health needs. When that information pipeline is disrupted, even briefly, the ripple effects can be profound. Without trustworthy, up-to-date data, pharmacists may struggle to identify local outbreaks, anticipate medication shortages, or provide accurate guidance on new variants or disease patterns.

In a health system already stretched thin, such instability threatens one of the few remaining constants in community care. During the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent vaccine rollouts, pharmacists filled vital gaps in access and education, reaching communities that might otherwise have been overlooked. But their capacity to do so effectively depends on the reliability of national data systems—particularly those like MMWR that set the tone for public health surveillance and response.

Cuts or pauses in CDC operations not only erode confidence within the agency itself but also disrupt the flow of information that underpins public trust in health professionals. When federal health data become politicized or unstable, pharmacists are often left to bridge the gap between incomplete guidance and community concern—forcing them to make frontline decisions without the assurance of comprehensive surveillance.

Pharmacists can only be effective pillars in their communities if they can rely on the integrity and continuity of national public health data. Protecting those systems protects not just the CDC, but the credibility and capability of every health professional who depends on it.

REFERENCES

1. Graziosi G. Trump scrambles to rehire CDC experts working on Ebola, measles and disease forecasting who were axed in government shutdown cuts. The Independent. October 12, 2025. Accessed October 13, 2025. https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-fired-cdc-workers-rehire-shutdown-b2843831.html

2. Zadrozny B. 'CDC is over': RFK Jr. lays off over 1,000 employees in Friday night massacre. MSNBC. October 11, 2025. Accessed October 13, 2025. https://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/news/cdc-rfk-jr-shutdown-layoffs-goal-rcna237035

3. Sun L. More than 1,000 CDC staff receive layoff notices during government shutdown. Washington Post. October 11, 2025. Accessed October 13, 2025. https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/10/11/cdc-layoffs-public-health-shutdown/

4. About the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) Series. CDC. Updated June 26, 2025. Accessed October 13, 2025. https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/about.html

5. Stobbe M. ‘Voice of the CDC’ resumes publication, but experts worry about what they’re not hearing. AP News. February 6, 2025. Accessed October 13, 2025. https://apnews.com/article/cdc-wildfires-mmwr-9b1caeefd33aeb7b7dbdf1ed944fc094