Image: Protesters rally to demand an end to DOGE’s and the Trump administration’s cuts to funding for science, research, education, and other areas, on April 8, 2025, in New York City. Spencer Platt / Getty Images

Sasha Abramsky of Truthout reports: “As the diarrhea-causing cyclospora parasite continues to spread through the U.S., now having sickened an estimated 11,500 Americans in at least nine states since May, it is becoming increasingly clear that the situation has been massively worsened by the actions of the “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE) over the past 18 months.

CNN reported last week that cuts to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have created a “perfect storm” in which the outbreak could go from a minor inconvenience to a national public health crisis within a matter of weeks. DOGE cut eight of the 11 jobs at the CDC lab specializing in cyclospora. Meanwhile, the rapid dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), which shared facilities and personnel with the State Department and CDC, also led to the loss of many of the experts and labs dealing with exotic diseases stateside, such as cyclospora. Take down USAID — an act that DOGE marketed as being about snuffing out supposedly bloated foreign aid programs — and there’s a guaranteed impact on the CDC and on the health of Americans stateside.

Add in additional cuts to a range of CDC offices, and the result is a disaster in the making…”

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