“It just interferes with our ability to provide these public health services to our community.”Advertisement AdvertisementAdvertisement AdvertisementNo grants were terminated, according to HHS. As of December 2025, $5.1 billion had been awarded: $4.7 billion to 107 health departments and $382 million to national partners. They paid for thousands of public health jobs across the country. For several hours Saturday, it seemed that this funding pause would come on top of cuts to Covid-era funding that states and local governments absorbed last year. “Not investing in public health infrastructure after the pandemic is like defunding the military after losing a war,” he said.

Source: CNN January 24, 2026 22:22 UTC