WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Jamie Raskin (MD-08) will bring his constituent, Dr. Lauren McGee, to the Joint Address to Congress today. Dr. McGee is one of the thousands of excellent employees at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) fired in the Trump Administration’s purge of federal agencies.
A biologist researching pediatric and canine osteosarcoma at the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH’s) National Cancer Institute (NCI) who received a perfect performance evaluation, Dr. McGee was fired in February alongside thousands of employees throughout the federal government.
“After dedicating her career to public health and medical research, Dr. McGee has seen her professional passion and livelihood upended by President Trump’s sweeping attacks on public servants,” said Rep. Raskin. “Dr. McGee’s story reminds us of the devastating consequences for all Americans when President Trump and Elon Musk indiscriminately attack public health authorities. Her unceremonious discharge hurts all the current and future patients depending on her research for medical progress. I’m honored that Dr. McGee will attend the Joint Address with me and know that she represents the situation of tens of thousands of federal workers across America.”
“Until February, I had my dream job within the NIH, at the National Cancer Institute’s comparative oncology program, studying how a cancer commonly found in pet dogs could be used to better understand a rare and aggressive pediatric cancer,” said Dr. Lauren McGee. “I was so excited to finally be able to help patients and their families while also working to find treatments for man’s best friend. I hope sharing my story helps in the fight against these illegal mass firings disrupting people’s lives and hurting medical research.”
Dr. McGee’s research focused on understanding osteosarcoma, a rare malignant bone cancer that affects both children and dogs. Researchers believe that studying the cancer in canines will help develop improvements in treatment for children. It is doubtful whether this research will continue in Dr. McGee’s absence.
Federal employees are generally classified as “probationary” for one year after being hired, promoted, demoted or reassigned. Dr. McGee had worked in the same lab as a post-doctoral fellow before her promotion to full time equivalent (FTE) status. This means that while she was formally in a probationary period, she had been promoted and had worked in the same lab for more than a year. Under federal employment law, probationary employees can only be terminated based on poor performance; Dr. McGee has received superior reviews.
Dr. McGee came to Rep. Raskin’s attention after sharing her story on Rep. Raskin’s “Share Your Story with Congressman Raskin: How have President Trump’s policies affected you?” webpage.
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