The VA is planning a reorganization that includes cutting over 80,000 jobs from the sprawling agency that provides healthcare and other services for millions of veterans. The VA's chief of staff, Christopher Syrek, told top-level officials at the agency Tuesday that it had an objective to cut enough employees to return to 2019 staffing levels of just under 400,000. That would require terminating tens of thousands of employees after the VA expanded during the Biden administration, as well as to cover veterans impacted by burn pits under the 2022 PACT Act.
Dr. Jay Bhattacharya promised to cut wasted research dollars and focus on funding studies to find the root causes of chronic diseases during his confirmation hearing to direct the $48 billion National Institutes of Health this morning. "Every dollar wasted on a frivolous study, every dollar wasted on administrative costs that are not needed, is a dollar not spent on research," Bhattacharya told the Senate HELP Committee.
Just a few weeks after summarily firing hundreds of employees, the Trump administration is now notifying some staff at the CDC that they're back on the job. On Tuesday, an unknown number of CDC staff began receiving emails stating that their letters of termination were being rescinded, according to emails reviewed by NPR and interviews with more than half a dozen sources at the agency who were not authorized to speak publicly.
Walgreens Boots Alliance is on the verge of finalizing a deal with private-equity firm Sycamore Partners to take the embattled drugstore chain private in a transaction valued at approximately $10 billion, according to a report. Negotiations are in advanced stages, with both sides aiming to seal the agreement as soon as Thursday — though a last-minute hurdle could still delay or derail talks, sources told The Wall Street Journal. The deal is expected to involve Sycamore paying between $11.30 and $11.40 per share in cash, with the potential inclusion of contingent value rights that would allow shareholders to benefit if certain financial benchmarks are met.
Duke Health and Novant Health said they will work together to develop new locations across the state to improve health outcomes. No specific projects or financial details were mentioned in a press release issued today. The partnership represents an unexpected connection between the state's second-largest hospital operator (Novant had about $10 billion in annual revenue last year) and third-biggest (Duke had $6.8 billion of revenue in fiscal 2024.) The organizations said construction for the first sites would begin this summer, with the facilities opening about 18 months later.