The job cuts have impacted researchers, scientists, and senior officials, leading to the loss of key figures who shaped U.S. policies on drug approvals, medical research, and public health.

The top veterinarians overseeing the bird flu response at the Food and Drug Administration's Center for Veterinary Medicine were laid off on Tuesday, as part of sweeping cuts ordered by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to the nation's health agencies.

WASHINGTON - The Trump administration has fired staff who were working on the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) bird flu response as part of its mass layoffs at the Department of Health and Human Services, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association and a source familiar with the situation.