HHS hinges firings on new at-will civil service category amid 2025 push

Health and Human Services is moving hundreds of senior career staff into a new at-will civil service classification to make it easier to fire them, a shift tied to the Project 2025 agenda backed by Trump allies. Officials say the change boosts accountability for policy-influencing managers, while critics accuse it of purging staff not loyal to the administration. The move is accompanied by reports of layoffs under a separate reduction-in-force at HHS, with the scope still unclear and no loyalty pledge required by the new rule.