On April 1, 2025, all 27 of the lab scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)'s Division of Viral Hepatitis were fired. Employees were informed in an email from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that their work was “identified as either unnecessary or virtually identical to duties being performed elsewhere in the agency."
The lab performs a type of genetic tracing that is not available anywhere else in the U.S. or the world. CDC epidemiologists working on an ongoing hepatitis C outbreak in Florida, which lab scientists have been investigating, have so far been unable to find another lab that can conduct the testing.
Infectious disease experts are concerned that the lab’s closure will increase the risk of viral infections. "More people get sick, or you don't recognize outbreaks at all, and they just continue to spread unchecked," said Kelly Wroblewski, Director of Infectious Disease Programs at the Association of Public Health Laboratories.