| Dear FASEB Member Society Volunteer Leaders and Staff, [NOTE: This memo is being sent to FASEB Board members, Publication Committee members, Society Executive Officers and Public Affairs Staff, and FASEB Staff, MOSAIC Scholars, and HGA Fellows] Staff and volunteer leaders at FASEB are aware of an article published in STAT News (see attached PDF) stating that mass firings took place today across the government including NIH, CDC, and other HHS agencies. The STAT article indicated the terminations were affecting people on probationary employment status. It is not clear how many people across those agencies lost their jobs. We have heard UNCONFIRMED rumors that approximately 1,500 employees at NIH were terminated and that most of those individuals were on probationary status (within their first 1-2 years of employment, a standard designation at federal agencies). These terminations were not performance based. At this time, we do not have any additional details, including which institutes and centers at NIH were affected, names of individuals, etc. Obviously, this is distressing to FASEB and individuals across the biomedical research community who have relationships with NIH and other HHS employees who may have lost their jobs today. FASEB staff have held conversations with coalition partners and other scientific societies throughout the day to try and understand the situation and obtain information from trusted sources. Because so much is unknown and unconfirmed at this time, we will not issue an immediate statement. We will continue to monitor the situation over the weekend and take action once we have a clearer picture of how this will impact NIH operations including the distribution of grants, training, and other activities. We are obviously very concerned about all NIH and HHS staff in the current environment. In the meantime, we ask that you share this memo with your society so they are aware FASEB is planning future action. In addition, the Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research is preparing a statement in support of NIH that will be circulated for organizational sign-on sometime next week. We will be sure to share the Ad Hoc Group statement with everyone once we receive it. FASEB will likely sign on following review by the Executive Committee since we expect it to come with a very short deadline to respond. We will keep you posted as more information becomes available. Sincerely, FASEB Office of Public Affairs |