The U.S. Department of Agriculture said it is trying to rehire bird flu experts that the agency accidentally fired as part of its efforts to cut costs based on recommendations from the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.
"Although several positions supporting [highly pathogenic avian influenza] were notified of their terminations over the weekend, we are working to swiftly rectify the situation and rescind those letters," the USDA said in a statement to CBS News.
The agency added that several types of workers, including veterinarians and other emergency response personnel, had been exempted from job cuts so that they could continue to work on the USDA's bird flu efforts. The agency said it "continues to prioritize the response to highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI)."
Since the H5N1 strain of the bird flu began spreading in the U.S. in 2022, about 148 million birds have been euthanized to prevent additional infections, which has caused egg prices to spike. In March 2024, the illness was found in dairy cows for the first time, while almost 70 human cases have been identified, mostly in dairy and poultry workers, including one fatality.
The USDA's job cuts come as the Trump administration is seeking to cut costs partly by reducing the size of the federal workforce. Federal agencies on Thursday began firing probationary employees, who are typically workers with less than one or two years of experience in their current jobs and haven't yet gained civil service protections.
In a Feb. 14 statement, USDA secretary Brooke Rollins touted what the department described as efforts to cut wasteful spending based on DOGE's recommendations. DOGE, headed by billionaire Elon Musk, has been directed by Mr. Trump to ferret out ways to trim federal spending.
"I welcome DOGE's efforts at USDA because we know that its work makes us better, stronger, faster, and more efficient. I will expect full access and transparency to DOGE in the days and weeks to come," Secretary Rollins said in the statement.
The USDA also said it had ended 78 contracts valued at more than $132 million, and is reviewing another 1,000 contracts. According to a partial list of canceled contracts listed in the USDA's Feb. 14 statement, some were related to diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI, programs, which Mr. Trump has ordered to be ended within the federal government.
The impact of the bird flu on flocks caused egg prices to surge 15% in January from the prior month, while some large retailers have started imposing limits on the amount of eggs customers can purchase in order to preserve their supplies.
