The Trump administration's near-elimination of NIOSH poses a grave threat to the health and safety of millions of American workers. As an essential agency, NIOSH safeguards workers across industries - miners risking black lung, firefighters exposed to carcinogens, healthcare staff facing infectious diseases, and many more - through vital research, protective equipment testing, worker screening programs, and workplace hazard analysis.
Dismantling over 50 years of expertise and infrastructure will directly jeopardize lives and livelihoods. Immediate action must be taken to reverse these reckless cuts and reinstate full funding for NIOSH's indispensable role in preventing workplace deaths, injuries, and illnesses that cause immense human suffering and economic losses.
Worker safety should be a paramount priority, not sacrificed due to budgetary negligence that values profit over people. Congress has a moral imperative to safeguard NIOSH and the essential workers who keep America running.