- Healthbeat
- Posts
- Helping their own: CDC workers build a safety net from within
Helping their own: CDC workers build a safety net from within
After firings, furloughs, and a shooting shook the CDC community, local groups, former employees, and nonprofits have stepped up — offering everything from free counseling to sandwich drives.
Rebecca Grapevine
November 13, 2025 • Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
Hi, Atlanta!
One of the great things about being a local reporter is getting a front-row seat to how people come together in large and small ways.
As thousands of Atlanta employees of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have weathered firings, a shooting, and furloughs that have left them without income, friends and colleagues have stepped up to support them. Here are a few of their efforts:
For months, the CDC Alumni and Friends group has rallied outside the CDC gates and provided information to reporters and the public about what’s going on at the agency. What I’ve learned from this group is that folks who worked at the CDC consider it a crucial part of their identity — and retirement doesn’t sever their ties with the agency or each other.
Fired but Fighting started in response to layoffs earlier this year and has grown in a variety of directions. Most recently, the group established an online talent marketplace where laid off employees can post services like babysitting, closet organizing, pet care, tutoring, and many others.
Fired but Fighting has also developed a series of webinars for people about career pivots and finding work and posted a list of therapists willing to provide free or reduced-cost counseling for fired and furloughed employees. The group has many other resources, as well.
Local businesspeople and nonprofits have also found ways to support federal workers under stress, from free yoga classes to headshots.
The CDC Mutual Aid Assistance Fund has offered financial help.
Those still employed at the agency are finding ways to give back, too. Sharoda Dasgupta brought together public health workers and two nonprofits, Compassionate Atlanta and The Sandwich Project, to make sandwiches for local organizations helping people in need.
🎤‘Aha’ Moments
Dr. Alawode Oladele is the supervising physician and laboratory director for infectious diseases and refugee health at DeKalb Public Health in Metro Atlanta, following decades of work in global public health. At our live event, “'Aha' Moments in Public Health: A Night of Healthbeat Storytelling,” he recalls an encounter in Haiti that illuminated the beauty of community and supporting one another, and the impact of seemingly small acts of service. Read his story here and watch it on YouTube.
Upcoming Events
🔊 ARCHI’s 2025 State of Metro Atlanta is set for 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Friday at the Decatur Conference Center. Renée Branch Canady, CEO of the Michigan Public Health Institute, will give the keynote address. More details here.
🍩 Neighborhood Nexus will hold its quarterly Data Breakfast Club on 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. Tuesday at Mercy Care (424 Decatur St., Atlanta). Coffee, donuts, and data nerdery will be on deck. Registration and more details here.
ICYMI
Here’s a recap of the latest reporting from Healthbeat:
Mammograms & more: Low-income women in Georgia can get free cancer screenings. Many don’t. A new study asks why.
Baby formula recall: Baby formula maker linked to botulism outbreak was warned previously about contamination issues
SNAP: With SNAP caught in legal limbo, Georgia implements expanded work requirements for food aid
5 From the Field: Q&A with NACCHO CEO Lori Freeman
Don’t miss Healthbeat’s new newsletter on global public health. Sign up here for the weekly Global Health Checkup.
The Grapevine 🍇
I started my career reporting on Atlanta’s federally qualified health centers, which serve low-income and uninsured people. Three of them have big news this week. First, Whitefoord and Medcura announced they plan to merge in early 2026. The new system will be able to serve about 36,000 patients each year, according to a press release. Whitefoord will maintain its longstanding early learning program.
And Mercy Care is breaking ground on the second phase of its affordable housing development. McAuley Station, in the Sweet Auburn neighborhood, will offer 97 one-bedroom apartments for adults 55 and older, right behind the Mercy Care clinic.
What I’m hearing from readers:
I had the opportunity to participate in this wonderful event. The common denominator in all the stories was and is the people. Thank you Healthbeat for creating an event that burst with inspiration and heart.
Hear from Healthbeat on other platforms:
11-Alive’s “The Take”: I discuss SNAP benefits and Georgia’s new work requirements that took effect on Nov. 1. Watch here.
“The Georgia Health Report”: This week I’ll be discussing the State of the Public’s Health, a recent conference held at the University of Georgia. Listen here or at 5:44 p.m. Friday or 5:35 p.m. Sunday on WUGA; or 5:35 p.m. Saturday on GPB.
What Do You Know?
Test your knowledge of public health topics. Today’s question:
Canada this week lost its measles elimination status. When did the United States eliminate measles? |
Tell Me More
What questions do you have about public health in Atlanta? You can reach me at [email protected], post a comment, or reply to this email.
In health,
Rebecca
Thumbnail photo by Rebecca Grapevine / Chalkbeat
Looking for your next read? Check out these other great newsletters.
|
|
|
|
Reply