This article was originally published on Word In Black.
Sweeping staff cuts announced last week at the federal Department of Health and Human Services have respiratory-health organizations sounding the alarm, warning of fewer resources to treat asthma, fight Big Tobacco, and help smokers quit — health issues that disproportionately affect the Black community.
The cuts, part of HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s pledge to slash 10,000 employees from the department’s full-time workforce, will gut government programs that address asthma rates, smoking and health, global tuberculosis rates, and control of tobacco products. They also threaten to undo the decades-long work of reducing smoking rates and helping clean the air for asthma sufferers.
Experts say they expect to see a rise in preventable lung-related illnesses, from asthma and allergy sufferers incapacitated by poor air quality to a growing number of smokers fighting related illnesses like heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, and lung cancer.
Harold Wimmer, president and CEO of the American Lung Association, said the day those staff reductions happened was “a good day for Big Tobacco and a bad day for anyone with lungs.” Kennedy and the Trump administration, he said, “have completely eliminated lifesaving programs” that are “critical to the health of the children and adults across the nation.”
Critical CDC and FDA Programs Slashed
That includes the CDC’s National Asthma Control Program, its Office of Smoking and Health, and its Global Tuberculosis Program as well as large parts of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products, he said.
Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, an advocacy nonprofit, said the White House has given the tobacco industry a green light to target young people.
“While the U.S. has made enormous progress, tobacco use still kills nearly half a million Americans and costs the nation $241 billion in health care expenses each year,” the organization said in a statement. “Tobacco companies never let up in finding new ways to addict kids and keep current customers hooked.”
Since the 1990s, efforts to limit tobacco advertising and engage in more research about the effects of tobacco use have helped decrease smoking rates. Fewer people are dying from tobacco-related lung cancer, and the federal government also funded programs that helped smokers quit.
Nevertheless, the layoffs gutted the Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Tobacco Products, which handles restrictions on tobacco marketing. That includes the center’s director, Brian King, who was placed on leave.
The CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health, which led the investigation into a deadly wave of lung injuries linked to contaminated vaping devices in 2019, was slashed.
The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, which supports allergy and asthma sufferers, said in a statement that the reductions in force “threaten essential services for millions of people with asthma and allergies, worsening health outcomes and limiting efforts to address environmental and occupational health risks.”
Disproportionately Impacted by Asthma
Nearly 28 million Americans have asthma, and about 10 people still die every day from the disease, according to the AAFA.
Black Americans are five times more likely to visit emergency rooms for asthma and three times more likely to die from it, according to AAFA. This is due to pollen, a major asthma trigger, becoming more potent and widespread from longer growing seasons and rising temperatures, which are disproportionately affecting communities in urban and underserved areas.
The CDC’s National Asthma Control Program works with state health departments to create community-based care models. The NACP has helped reduce the number of deaths, hospitalizations, and emergency room visits by roughly 45% between 1999 and 2018. The program has also cut the annual cost of treating asthma to $82 billion, but for every $1 spent, the program saves an average of $71.
“Eliminating the staff responsible for this program will leave state and local health departments without adequate support to address asthma,” AAFA said.
The CDC’s Climate and Health Program was zeroed out. This initiative helped state and local health departments prepare for climate-related health threats such as extreme weather and heat, worsening air quality, and increased pollen levels.
All of these factors can trigger asthma and allergy symptoms. The program also helped identify associated health risks, as well as the most vulnerable populations in local communities.
A 2023 study published in Environmental Health Perspectives found that communities of color are more likely to live in areas with high allergen exposure but have less access to healthcare, allergy specialists, and environmental protections. Structural racism, including redlining and underinvestment in urban green spaces, contributes to these disparities.
Experts urge targeted interventions, including improved air quality monitoring in marginalized neighborhoods, equitable access to allergy treatments, and climate resilience planning.
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