When Science Loses Its Voice

The views expressed in this essay are solely my own and do not represent those of the Department of Health and Human Services or any federal agency.

Some framed it as cutting “waste, fraud and abuse.” Others called it a cruel April Fools’ joke. On April 1 more than 10,000 public servants at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) received the same message: Their services were no longer needed. 

To “Make America Healthy Again,” the health secretary promised “radical transparency.” Yet, ironically, he fired the very people responsible for delivering vital information to the public at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and other agencies. This purge may create a vacuum that can foster panic and false narratives at a time when trusted voices in public health are needed most. 

Tiffany Chen

As a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications, I was taught that journalism is a public service grounded in truth, clarity and the belief that shared knowledge can empower people to make better decisions. That philosophy isn’t confined to newsrooms. I carried it with me onto the NIH campus in Bethesda, Md., where I worked at the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, the lead agency for oral health research. For the past five years, I helped ensure scientific discoveries reached the public.  

There’s a saying in the scientific community: “The science isn’t complete until it’s communicated.” Every public health guideline you follow, every clinical trial announcement you hear and every new drug or discovery you see in the news likely starts with the communications office.  

My colleagues and I translated complex research into clear and actionable narratives for the public, media and lawmakers. We built easy-to-navigate websites, crafted social media campaigns and developed videos and graphics that brought health information, research and data to life. The goal was to help people make life-changing decisions. 

The job was highly rewarding. Parents shared that their children now brush their teeth without reminders because of my writing. Clinicians credited our patient stories with increasing clinical trial enrollment.  

Like any organization, there’s always room for improvement. From hiring in-house graphic designers to adopting new technologies that streamline workflow, I could suggest a dozen ways to cut costs and boost efficiency. But gutting communications teams would not be on the list. 

At the NIH, while the main communications office remains, nearly all the rest of its 27-plus specialized offices are gone. Some may argue against the need for them. But the NIH is not a single entity. It’s a collection of 27 institutes and centers, with a combined total of about 40,000 staff, including contractors. Each institute and center varies in size and scope and has a its own distinct research portfolio and target audiences. To serve the public effectively, each one needs a dedicated voice. The same principle applies to the CDC, FDA and other agencies under HHS. 

The fallout is already here. Many NIH websites sit stale with few or no updates, and its flagship cancer newsletter that scientists and patients rely on was discontinued. At the CDC, the studio and media relations teams that once ran press conferences and answered media inquiries have been decimated. FDA staff tasked with alerting doctors and the public about dangerous drugs have been let go. Meanwhile, a measles resurgence, delays in responses to bird flu outbreaks and other new threats loom. 

At Medill, I was trained to ask tough questions, hold power accountable and be the voice of the people. When my colleagues and I raised concerns about the disappearance of vetted health information, we received a dismissive response: “Can’t people find it somewhere else?” 

Much of the information you find “somewhere else” draws reference and data from government websites. Our small institute’s website alone served 3.3 million visitors in 2024. Many are from Spanish-speaking communities, where people rely on our accurate translations and culturally sensitive health resources. NIH websites are also built with accessibility in mind, ensuring that people with disabilities can navigate them with ease. We serve everyone. 

When communicators disappear, the bridge between science and the public collapses. When those channels go silent, the public is left in the dark. 

As a result, clinicians may miss out on new research that could transform best practices for patient care. Policymakers might cut funding for promising science simply because they don’t understand its value.  

HHS is the backbone of our nation’s biomedical research, public health and safety. Its work shapes policies that protect communities, funds research that leads to medical breakthroughs and ensures that vital health information reaches every corner of the country.  

But that mission cannot succeed if the voices responsible for sharing this information are silenced. We cannot afford to wait for the next public health crisis to reveal the cost of these cuts. 

Tiffany Chen ’18 MS of Rockville, Md., worked as a technical writer-editor at the NIH’s National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research.