The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has announced significant restructuring plans. The restructuring aims to save taxpayers $1.8 billion per year by reducing the workforce by about 10,000 full-time employees. Combined with other HHS efforts like early retirement and the Office of Personnel Management's now-closed "Fork in the Road" deferred resignation program, HHS projects that a total restructuring will downsize the agency from 82,000 to 62,000 full-time employees. Additionally, the restructuring plan aims to consolidate the current 28 divisions of HHS into 15 divisions, including a new Administration for a Healthy America (AHA), and will centralize core functions such as human resources, information technology, procurement, external affairs, and policy. HHS regional offices will be reduced from 10 to five.
HHS has provided the following details of the restructuring plan:
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The AHA will combine multiple agencies — the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, Health Resources and Services Administration, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, and National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health — into a new, unified entity.
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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will absorb the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response.
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HHS will create a new Assistant Secretary for Enforcement to oversee the Departmental Appeals Board, Office of Medicare Hearings and Appeals, and Office for Civil Rights.
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HHS will merge the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) with the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality to create the new Office of Strategy.
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Critical programs within the Administration for Community Living for older adults and people with disabilities will be absorbed by other HHS agencies, including the Administration for Children and Families, ASPE, and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. This reorganization will not impact Medicare and Medicaid services.
