Coal miners, families and advocates were still trying to figure out what the termination of leases for dozens of Mine Safety and Health Administration offices by Elon Musk’s DOGE meant for the work of mine safety inspectors when even worse news came. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was planning to gut the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health.

NIOSH is a small agency, with only around 1,200 employees — 870 of whom were expected to be laid off as part of Kennedy’s massive DHHS “restructuring.” But this small agency does important work to protect worker health and safety. Several branches focus on miner safety and health, including the Morgantown office, which will be slashed under this plan.

The agency was created by Congress as part of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, which also created the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. It is housed under the Centers for Disease Control, but Kennedy is planning to consolidate what’s left of the office under a new “Administration for a Healthy America.”

NIOSH maintains the Coal Workers’ Health Surveillance Program, which maintains a mobile screening service that helps miners catch black lung early. The data is used for analyzing trends and is why we know how bad the current black lung epidemic is right now. This program has been entirely gutted by Kennedy’s recent actions, according to recently fired staff.

In a statement, United Mine Workers of America International President Cecil Roberts referred to the MSHA lease terminations, the NIOSH layoffs and other developments as “a perfect storm,” that would “significantly increase” health and safety risks for coal miners.

U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., expressed concern about the cuts. 

“During my meetings with Secretary Kennedy prior to his confirmation and as recently as last week, we discussed how important the health of coal workers is to West Virginia,” Capito said. “Any cuts that impact their health monitoring need to be restored immediately. I am working with the Department of Health and Human Services to understand the depth of these cuts, both to programs and the workforce in Morgantown.”

U.S. Sen. Jim Justice, R-W.Va., expressed his support for restructuring DHHS in a statement, saying, “I’ve seen the news regarding layoffs in Morgantown, and with it have seen the plan put together by Secretary Kennedy to restructure the entire Health Department. I am in favor of cuts to waste across the federal government, and I’m sure Secretary Kennedy understands how important coal miner health programs run by the department are to West Virginia.”

West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey said the state would work to help terminated employees find new jobs, not addressing what the cuts would mean for the health of his state’s miners. Reps. Riley Moore and Carol Miller, R-W.Va., have declined press requests to comment.

“The expected cuts to NIOSH will inevitably lead to worse health and safety conditions for coal miners — and other workers — in more ways than we can count,” said Appalachian Voices Government Affairs Specialist Quenton King. “NIOSH oversees black lung research that helped miners and medical professionals alike understand the scale of the black lung epidemic that we’re still seeing today. Its mobile clinic went directly to mining communities to provide free, confidential screenings so miners can find out if they have black lung disease.”

It’s essential that these screening services are confidential because many miners say they fear being fired if their employers learn they’re undergoing tests that could produce a black lung diagnosis.

Agency scientists also certify respirators — including N95 masks used by healthcare professionals and the respirators used by firefighters. They helped develop personal dust monitors that can alert miners when they are in unsafe conditions.

NIOSH also trained doctors to interpret X-rays and other diagnostic tests to diagnose black lung and asbestosis.

Without NIOSH, it will be harder for miners with early indications of black lung disease to ask to work in areas of mines with lower dust concentration. 

“NIOSH keeps miners safe and keeps them working,” said King. “Without NIOSH, the Mine Safety and Health Administration will have less data to improve its regulations. Every coal miner in the country is going to be worse off if these cuts aren’t reversed.” 

Kennedy has suggested some of these cuts — as much as 20% of the employees laid off — could be reversed.

Meanwhile, confusion continues over the termination of leases for MSHA offices, many in Appalachia. It isn’t clear when or whether these offices will close and what will happen to the inspectors who work out of them. MSHA field staff located in these offices are crucial for protecting miner health and safety, as well as public safety. It is deeply concerning that there has been no public communication from MSHA or the Department of Labor about the plan for these field stations or the hundreds of field staff that work in these areas.

If these offices are closed and staff are reassigned, relocated or terminated, it would have devastating impacts on mine safety and miner health.