Reuters
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Thousands of employees fired this week from the Department of Health and Human Services and the public health agencies it oversees may be asked to temporarily continue working for two months and others could be reinstated, officials said on Thursday. "There were some programs that were cut that are being reinstated," Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told ABC News, referring in particular to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention program that monitors lead levels in children's blood. The department on Tuesday began mass layoffs at high profile health agencies like the FDA, CDC and National Institutes of Health, aiming to fire 10,000 staffers as part of a broader plan by President Donald Trump and billionaire ally Elon Musk to shrink the federal government and slash spending.