MADISON, Wis. – Attorney General Josh Kaul today secured a preliminary injunction halting Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.’s attempt to dismantle the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), ensuring continued access to critical public health and social service programs. On May 5, Attorney General Kaul joined a coalition of 19 attorneys general in suing to stop the administration’s sweeping and unlawful directive, which left HHS unable to carry out many of its most vital functions. Today, Judge Melissa R. Dubose of the United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island blocked the administration’s mass layoffs at several key HHS agencies while the case proceeds.
“This ruling for now stops this Trump administration effort to substantially downsize the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which would meaningfully diminish that agency’s ability to protect the health of the American people,” said AG Kaul. “We will continue working to prevent public health from being unlawfully undermined.”
On March 27, Secretary Kennedy announced a sweeping restructuring of HHS. The plan collapsed 28 agencies into 15, terminated 10,000 employees without warning, and left key HHS offices shuttered or in disarray. Many workers learned they were fired only after being locked out of their offices and deactivated from government systems. In their lawsuit, Attorney General Kaul and the multistate coalition argued that this unlawful overhaul immediately endangered lives and left crucial systems in chaos. The overhaul cut off federal support for Head Start centers, suspended maternal health data collection, and nearly shuttered disease monitoring at the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The administration also terminated the entire team responsible for updating federal poverty guidelines – a tool used to determine eligibility for programs like SNAP, Medicaid, and housing assistance.
Today, Judge DuBose granted the states’ request for a preliminary injunction, blocking further implementation of the restructuring and stopping the termination of employees across four critical offices:
- The CDC, including the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health;
- The Center for Tobacco Products;
- The Office of Head Start; and
- The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation.
Joining Attorney General Kaul in this lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Michigan, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and the District of Columbia.