grunkle liv

BREAKING—Trump HHS has abruptly canceled more than $12 billion in federal grants to states that were being used for tracking infectious diseases, mental health services, addiction treatment and other urgent health issues. The discontinued grants include about $11.4 billion from the CDC, as well as around $1 billion from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, known as S.A.M.H.S.A. Congress authorized the money for state public health programs as part of Covid relief bills. The funds were indeed initially used for testing for and vaccination against the coronavirus, as well as to address health disparities in high-risk populations. But last year, the money was also allowed to be put toward other pressing public health concerns, including testing and surveillance of other respiratory viruses, an array of vaccines for children or uninsured adults and preparedness for health emergencies. Examples of immediate impact: 📌In Lubbock, Texas, public health officials have received orders to stop work supported by three grants that helped fund the response to the widening measles outbreak there, according to Katherine Wells, the city’sdirector of public health. 📌On Tuesday, some state health departments were preparing to lay off dozens of epidemiologists and data scientists. Others, including Texas, Maine and Rhode Island, were still scrambling to understand the impact of the cuts before taking any action. 📌In interviews, state health officials predicted that thousands of health department employees and contract workers could lose their jobs nationwide. Some predicted the loss of as much as ⬇️90% of staff from some infectious disease teams. nytimes.com/2025/03/26/healt…