Alliance Alert: We are closely monitoring developments in Washington as Congress works to avert another federal government shutdown. As reported, a tentative deal between the White House and Senate leaders would fund most federal agencies, including the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the end of the fiscal year. While negotiations are still unfolding, it is critical that Congress move quickly to pass a funding package that keeps HHS fully operational and avoids further disruption.
Stable funding for HHS is essential to maintaining mental health, substance use, public health, and social service programs that communities across New York and the nation rely on every day. Another shutdown or prolonged uncertainty would jeopardize not only the livelihoods of dedicated federal staff, but also the capacity of agencies like SAMHSA, CDC, NIH, and others to administer grants, provide oversight, and support the local community-based organizations delivering frontline support services. After months marked by staffing upheaval and threats to grant funding, our systems cannot withstand additional instability.
We urge Congress to prioritize passage of a funding agreement that fully supports HHS and protects critical health services, including mental health and substance use treatment, prevention, harm reduction, and recovery supports. Federal staff and community providers alike need certainty to continue their work supporting people, families, and communities. The Alliance will continue to track these negotiations closely and advocate for federal actions that strengthen, rather than undermine, our health and human services safety net.
Is HHS Out of the Woods?
By Sophie Gardner and Kelly Hooper | Politico | January 30, 2026
SHUTDOWN DEAL — President Donald Trump reached a deal with Democrats on Thursday to avoid a partial government shutdown — a move that makes it likely the Senate will pass a funding bill for HHS today.
The deal would provide funding through Sept. 30 for most departments and agencies — including HHS — while providing a short-term stopgap for the Department of Homeland Security.
The reversal comes after eight Republicans joined every Senate Democrat to block the six-bill package from advancing Thursday. The House already passed the bills, then left town for recess.
Key context: The Senate was on track to pass the package until Border Patrol agents killed Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old U.S. citizen, on Saturday. Democrats said they wouldn’t advance the funding measure if DHS funding was included, unless Republicans agreed to put new guardrails around Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
A spokesperson for Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Thursday’s deal would extend the current DHS funding levels for two weeks, giving lawmakers time to negotiate new restrictions on the department’s immigration enforcement operations.
At HHS: The news suggests that HHS staff narrowly avoided another period without pay. Some employees, however, were willing to make that sacrifice.
“There’s a lot of frustration among HHS employees about the idea of another shutdown. People are still kind of coming out of the last one and catching up with financial obligations,” former HHS employee Sarah Boim told POLITICO earlier this week. Boim worked with current employees to write a letter opposing any appropriations bill that didn’t include additional restrictions on immigration enforcement.
“I can’t speak for everybody, but I can speak for a lot of people — we are willing to kind of go through that hardship to ensure that ICE and CBP have some accountability,” she said.
What’s next: The government could still partially shut down early Saturday morning, since the House is in recess and not scheduled to return until Monday. Speaker Mike Johnson said Thursday it would take days to bring his members back into town, though Trump’s endorsement could help speed things along, POLITICO’s Jordain Carney, Katherine Tully-McManus and Jennifer Scholtes report.