Sen. Shelley Moore Capito sent a letter Tuesday to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., asking him to restore the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in Morgantown.
At the beginning of April, as part of the Trump Administration’s effort to significantly reduce the federal workforce, HHS cut a number of agencies under its umbrella.
NIOSH was one of those cuts. In the midst of state and federal efforts to bump coal production, the agency works to keep miners safe. Roughly 200 employees in the Morgantown office lost their jobs. At the time Capito said she strongly disagreed with those cuts.
Capito highlighted the important role NIOSH plays in the health and wellbeing of West Virginia coal miners and requested that the administration bring back these critical programs and employees that allow them to function properly.
“I believe in the President’s vision to right size our government, but I do not think eliminating the NIOSH coal programs and research will accomplish that goal,” she said. “The mission and work conducted by the specially trained NIOSH employees is not duplicative of any other government program. I am concerned that the RIFs [Reductions In Force] at NIOSH will undermine the vital health programs important to so many West Virginians. I urge you to bring back the NIOSH employees immediately so they can continue to support our nation’s coal industry.”
Capito is the chairman of the Senate Appropriations subcommittee that oversees Health and Human Services.
Multiple news agencies have reported that Kennedy said he expected 20% of the cuts they made would be mistakes and would be reversed.