After writing a letter to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito said Tuesday that progress has been made in temporarily restoring some employees of the Morgantown NIOSH facility, though more work was needed.
In a statement on social media Tuesday morning, Capito said some laid off employees at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) facility in Morgantown would be returning to work on a temporary basis.
“Based on conversations I’ve had with folks on the ground in Morgantown and at (the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), I am encouraged that some NIOSH functions for coal miner and firefighter safety are slated to resume with some select staff returning to work this week,” said Capito, R-W.Va. “But my understanding is that this is temporary, so my focus will continue to be on working with (HHS) on permanently restoring these functions and personnel in the most efficient and effective manner.”
Last week, Capito penned a letter to Kennedy urging him to reverse course on an April 1 reduction in force (RIF) notification for all HHS agencies and programs. Approximately 200 jobs would be eliminated at the Morgantown NIOSH as part of a nationwide reduction of approximately 2,400 NIOSH jobs.
NIOSH, an agency which reports to the CDC, conducts research into workplace-related injuries and illnesses. In Morgantown, NIOSH conducts research on coal-related health issues, such as respiratory diseases like Black Lung, traumatic mine injuries, and coal mine safety.
Capito chairs the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies. She recently met with Kennedy to discuss her concerns with the proposed layoffs for the Morgantown NIOSH facility.
Trump signed an executive order earlier in April aimed at encouraging the continued use of coal for electric generation and steel manufacturing. Among other things, the executive order designates coal as a critical mineral. The order also lifted barriers to coal mining and leases on federal land, the rescinding of agency policies moving the nation away from coal for electric generation.
Last week, U.S. Rep. Riley Moore, R-W.Va., also wrote a letter to Kennedy asking him to reinstate the employees at the Morgantown NIOSH facility. Moore is a member of the House Appropriations Committee.
“I fully support President Donald Trump’s mission to streamline the federal workforce and make the federal government more efficient,” Moore wrote. “However, NIOSH’s Morgantown facility supports a key component of President Trump’s agenda to unleash coal mining to power America’s new Golden Age. Eliminating the facility has disrupted key programs like black lung testing, respirator testing, and basic safety research, and it could set back decades of research and innovation that have protected West Virginia coal miners and the broader American public.”