Most employees furloughed by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services during the ongoing government shutdown will temporarily return to work on Oct. 27 to help individuals sign up for health insurance plans during open enrollment.
CMS furloughed 47% of its 6,700-member workforce when the shutdown began. Although the agency didn’t specify how many employees will be affected, approximately 3,000 workers are expected to return to work, according to the agency’s plan for a lapse in funding. CMS will pay these returning workers through funding collected through user fees from sharing data with researchers.
Overall, the Department of Health and Human Services furloughed 41% of the nearly 80,000 workers at the start of the shutdown. Earlier this month, it sent layoff notices to 992 employees, many of whom worked for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. HHS outlined its furlough policy shortly before the shutdown was announced.
“Over the duration of any lapse, HHS will continue to review its resources, authorities and flexibilities under the law to minimize the impact of such a lapse on the safety of human life and the protection of property,” it said in a news release. “HHS will rely on exceptions in the ADA to continue to protect human life and property, such as monitoring for disease outbreaks conducted by the CDC.”
Although a federal judge temporarily blocked layoffs of federal workers during the shutdown, HHS said the order does not apply to it because affected staff were not represented by the unions that filed the lawsuit. “CMS will continue to abide by rules governing the Democrat-led government shutdown,” a spokesperson said.
The health care industry is beginning to feel the effects of the ongoing shutdown, which now is the third-longest in the nation’s history. Consumers with Marketplace plans under the Affordable Care Act face steep premium increases in 2026 in some states. Several hospitals have stopped providing Medicare telehealth services after reimbursements ended and instead are transferring at-home patients to physical hospitals.
The Senate this week failed for the 12th time to pass a House-approved bill that would extend telehealth funding. This legislation does not include an extension of enhanced ACA premium subsidies, which is a key point of contention between Democrats and Republicans during the shutdown.
The decision to bring employees back comes one week into the Medicare enrollment period and a week before ACA marketplace plan enrollment begins on Nov. 1.
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