Ouch! Federal Government Shutdown Painful for FDA and CDC

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Reported by Annette Kreuger, Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)-- With the federal government in its latest budget quandary, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are feeling the ill effects. The two agencies, which operate under the Health and Human Services Department (HHS) umbrella, have told an alarming number of their respective workforces that they will be out of work until further notice.

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These vital agencies perform a plethora of services, most of which affect us on a daily basis and are directly involved with keeping us healthy. In the case of the FDA, it oversees the drugs we take and the food we eat. From a dollar standpoint, working with a roughly $5 billion annual budget, it is responsible for the safety and validity of more than $2.4 trillion worth of products. The agency laid off 42% (7,100 people) of its 17,800-employee pool.

The CDC, as its name implies, monitors and prevents disease outbreaks (including bioterrorism and influenza), along with virtually everything else that affects the public's health, and operates with a $7 billion annual budget. Taking a heavier hit than the FDA, the CDC lost almost two-thirds or 63% (8,500 people) of its 13,600-strong workforce.

Emails were sent out late Friday evening (January 19) to employees notifying those who would be furloughed. This was followed by another request asking them to come to work on Monday for half a day to identify what would help with the transition.

What will happen to important agency services during this shutdown? According to the FDA website (which is no longer being updated) and its Commissioner Scott Gottlieb's numerous tweets, "mission critical" services will continue, going on to say "..agency operations continue to the extent permitted by law, such as activities necessary to address imminent threats to the safety of human life..." These include addressing current drug shortages (i.e. IV-solution production in Puerto Rico impacted by Hurricane Maria), as well as the monitoring of adverse events for drugs, medical devices and other medical products.

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In the midst of an especially severe flu season, the CDC insists it will keep reporting any critical information needed to track, prevent and treat the flu. This is a change from initial reports that flu tracking would be halted.

A number of services will be curtailed, if not completely stopped, until the budget trauma is resolved. At the FDA, this would include new drug approvals, updating mislabeled medications or conducting routine food safety inspections. The CDC target list of stoppages includes non-flu related disease research and the testing of suspicious pathogens. The plan also states that its ability to maintain its 24-hour emergency operations center will be "significantly reduced." The center is often the first step in identifying dangerous pathogens.

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