This month, over 10% of the workforce at the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration was terminated as part of the government-wide reductions impacting recently hired federal employees, a decision mandated by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, commonly referred to as DOGE, task force.
The layoffs, which affected around 100 probationary employees, involved multiple teams within the department, including newly appointed directors of SAMHSA’s regional offices and personnel working on initiatives related to the 988 hotline, which supports individuals experiencing mental health crises and is overseen by the agency, multiple current and former federal health officials reported to CBS News.
Within the agency’s communications team, responsible for promoting awareness about the 988 hotline, one SAMHSA employee disclosed that a quarter of their team had departed over the past month.
“The federal staff members tasked with overseeing and promoting awareness of 988 on a national scale are the ones who are no longer with us,” shared employee Stacey Palosky on LinkedIn.
Officials anticipate that the ramifications of these reductions will not be felt immediately, similar to many other health agencies managing extensive grants and external contracts. Instead, they warned that the cuts would likely lead to a gradual weakening of SAMHSA’s oversight capabilities, a slowdown in grant approvals, and delays in guidance updates.
A substantial portion of the agency’s function involves the allocation and monitoring of taxpayer funds granted to drug addiction and mental health treatment initiatives.
This includes financing for the call centers that operate the 988 hotline, primarily managed by state and local governments nationwide, in addition to the nonprofit that oversees it.
Federal health officials have expressed concerns that these layoffs could signal a return to the dwindling morale experienced during the early Trump administration, which followed a significant reduction in the agency’s workforce.
According to records compiled by the Partnership for Public Service, SAMHSA’s employee count fell to an all-time low of 376 in 2020, down from a high of 553 in 2014.
During this period, employee satisfaction scores at SAMHSA plummeted to a record low of 27 out of 100, considerably beneath the federal agencies’ average.
However, employee satisfaction began to improve in 2020, achieving a peak of 81.5 in 2023, surpassing the average. Additionally, SAMHSA’s workforce increased to 633 by 2023.
In recent weeks, most federal health agencies have also experienced layoffs, primarily executed through termination letters issued over the past weekend by the Department of Health and Human Services or due to canceled contracts.
Agencies experiencing losses of contractors and recently hired personnel include the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Food and Drug Administration, the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response, and the Administration for Children and Families.
Some agencies that were initially slated for significant reductions later obtained exemptions for many health agency employees, such as those at the Indian Health Service.
The total number of employees ultimately cut from the Department of Health and Human Services remains unclear, with a spokesperson for the department not immediately providing a comment.
Remaining officials at SAMHSA expressed frustration over the firings, viewing them as detrimental to recent hard-fought hires for essential positions.
One health official warned of a potential return to the “doom loop” that afflicted the agency during the first Trump administration, a period when most high-performing employees departed SAMHSA for private sector jobs, further diminishing morale.
While some staff continue to stay due to their commitment to public service, others feel trapped in their positions at SAMHSA, whether due to personal situations or difficulty securing employment elsewhere.
“Last time it took them two or three years to create the doom loop. This time, it has occurred in less than a month,” remarked the official.
