HHS Introduces Incentive to Streamline Workforce: Discover the Details

HHS offers 80,000 employees $25,000 to voluntarily resign as the Trump administration moves forward with its federal workforce reduction plan.

Quick Takes

HHS employees received an unsigned email offering a $25,000 buyout with a March 14 response deadline.
The initiative aims to reduce staff in surplus positions or with obsolete skills while avoiding costly involuntary separations.
The offer extends to employees across major agencies including CDC, CMS, FDA, and NIH.
This buyout is part of broader Trump administration efforts to reduce the federal workforce.

Buyout Initiative Targets 80,000 HHS Employees

The Health and Human Services Department (HHS) has launched a major workforce reduction initiative, offering employees up to $25,000 to leave their positions voluntarily. This Voluntary Separation Incentive Payment was authorized by the Office of Personnel Management and communicated to approximately 80,000 HHS employees through an unsigned email. The offer targets workers in surplus positions or those whose skills are no longer needed in line with the department’s evolving priorities and President Trump’s workforce reduction goals.

The initiative affects employees across major health agencies including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Food and Drug Administration, and National Institutes of Health. As the second-costliest agency in the U.S. budget, accounting for 20.6% of federal spending with $2.4 trillion in resources for Fiscal Year 2025, HHS represents a significant target for budget-conscious reforms and staff reductions.

Kennedy’s Vision for HHS Transformation

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has not directly commented on the buyout offer, but his previous statements indicate his intention to reshape the department’s workforce. Kennedy has been vocal about wanting to remove certain staff members, particularly those he believes are aligned with pharmaceutical industry interests rather than public health priorities.

However, some experts warn that significant staff reductions could undermine Kennedy’s ability to implement his ambitious policy agenda. Professor Dorit Reiss noted the challenges Kennedy faces, stating, “Cutting staff is one challenge Mr. Kennedy will face. That challenge will be exacerbated by his lack of expertise about the department’s general functions, something in which an expert staff could help him with.” This highlights the tension between reducing personnel and maintaining institutional knowledge.

Part of Broader Federal Workforce Reduction

The HHS buyout offer represents just one component of a sweeping federal workforce reduction plan being implemented across the Trump administration. Similar offers were extended to approximately 2 million federal workers in January, with about 75,000 accepting. The current initiative provides eligible employees a brief window to apply, with forms due by Friday at 5 p.m., reflecting the administration’s urgency to move forward with staffing adjustments.

President Trump has made it clear that agency heads bear primary responsibility for staffing decisions but warned that the Department of Government Efficiency, led by Elon Musk, stands ready to intervene if sufficient cuts aren’t made voluntarily. The voluntary separation approach aims to minimize disruption by avoiding involuntary separations while still achieving significant workforce reductions, offering employees who accept the buyout a smoother transition out of federal service than would be possible through forced layoffs.