Judge Halts Mass Firings and Organizational Changes at H.H.S.

A federal judge on Tuesday temporarily blocked the Trump administration from moving forward with a dramatic reorganization of the Department of Health and Human Services, finding that the mass firings and organizational changes were probably unlawful.

In an opinion accompanying the order, Judge Melissa R. DuBose of the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island said that Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s efforts to wipe out entire programs and reorient the agency’s priorities and work far exceeded his authority.

“The executive branch does not have the authority to order, organize or implement wholesale changes to the structure and function of the agencies created by Congress,” she wrote.