CDC’s Division of Oral Health gutted amid federal restructuring

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s entire Division of Oral Health was gutted April 1, amid the Trump administration’s efforts to majorly restructure federal health agencies. 

This comes after the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced March 27 that 10,000 full-time employees would be laid off as part of the overhaul. The restructuring will result in a total downsizing from 82,000 to 62,000 full-time employees, according to the agency. 

Major layoffs and reassignments have affected personnel across HHS sub-agencies, including the CDC, the National Institutes of Health, and the Food and Drug Administration. The Washington Post reported that many senior officials were placed on administrative leave or offered reassignments to remote locations under the Indian Health Service.

The CDC’s Division of Oral Health has long provided leadership and evidence-based guidance on a range of critical public health issues, including infection control in dental practice settings, community water fluoridation and dental sealant programs targeted at preventing tooth decay in children. 

In a statement, the ADA urged President Donald Trump and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to “immediately reverse these cuts and restore critical health.”

“Oral health must remain a national priority — valued, supported and promoted across all levels of the administration,” reads the statement. 

ADA President Brett Kessler, D.D.S., expressed disappointment in the oral health workforce reductions. 

“I see in my patients, when the mouth is ignored, the body suffers, inflammation increases and compromised people get sicker, and our collective quality of life plummets,” Dr. Kessler said in the statement. 

 The move comes as Congress prepares to scrutinize the reorganization. Senate Health Committee Chairman Bill Cassidy, R-La., has invited Mr. Kennedy to testify at an April 10 hearing, where lawmakers are expected to raise concerns about the scale and legality of the restructuring. 

The ADA said it will continue to monitor developments and assess the implications for dental public health programs, including those related to water fluoridation and oral disease prevention.