Gillibrand, Schumer Continue To Press Secretary Kennedy On World Trade Center Health Program Staff Cuts

Mar 26, 2026
This week, U.S. Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Charles Schumer (D-NY) launched a new effort to press U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to quickly address the staff cuts and administrative delays at the World Trade Center Health Program (WTCHP).
In their new letter to Secretary Kennedy,   Gillibrand and Schumer emphasized that while Congress passed legislation to address the WTCHP’s funding deficit last month, HHS has done little to address the program’s outstanding staffing and administrative needs.
The senators wrote,“Of immediate concern is the continuing chaos at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) driven by this Administration. Since you were confirmed as Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary, the churn of leadership in the Director position has caused turmoil throughout the agency, particularly within WTCHP. Without full-time, adequate leadership at CDC, the administration has made uninformed decisions that create harmful downstream impacts, such as firing staff at WTCHP and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).”
Gillibrand and Schumer continued the letter by calling into question the reassignment of two Public Health Service Corps officers from their positions at the WTCHP. This includes the reassignment of the deputy director of the WTCHP to work in the Indian Health Service (IHS) and the reassignment of another officer in support of immigration enforcement efforts.
The senators wrote,“We are concerned that these staff changes will put additional strain on an already understaffed WTCHP. Since President Trump’s inauguration, we have seen the staffing levels at the WTCHP drop from 93 to 84 staff members. The program is authorized to have 120 full-time staff to support the over 30,000 new 9/11 responders and survivors.”
Staff reductions immediately impact the first responders and survivors who depend on the WTCHP for their health care. There have been significant delays in the processing of claims and treatment authorizations, and any type of further delay to first responders and survivors could be catastrophic. Additionally, without an appeals officer on staff, there is no one at the WTCHP who can process denied eligibility claims.
The senators continued,“Leadership failures at HHS continue to create problems for the program and its enrollees. Over $20 million in research contracts have not yet been awarded, delaying pending petitions for cardiac, autoimmune, and cognitive issues related to toxic exposure on 9/11.”
The senators closed the letter with a list of questions regarding continued issues with the WTCHP that HHS has not adequately addressed, including pauses in communication, concerns with upcoming vendor transitions, halted research grant awards, hiring freezes, and yearslong delays in the process to petition for new diseases to be covered.
The full letter can be readHERE.
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