Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), the chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, wrote to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Tuesday questioning if a city-run health agency was using federal resources in its initiative aimed at responding to the “ongoing genocide in Palestine.”
He suggested that public funding for the city’s health department could be at risk without a course-correction.
Cassidy sent the letter to Mamdani on Tuesday afternoon raising his concern about the “Global Oppression and Public Health Working Group” established within New York City’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene in response to the “ongoing genocide in Palestine.”
The Louisiana senator cited a New York Post report that said the group “aims to address the growing interests among the health department staff to learn about current and ongoing global oppression in its many forms and how it influences the advancement of health equity.”
After noting that there was no mention of Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attacks on Israel during the group’s inaugural meeting, as reported by the Post, Cassidy mentioned a recent comment that Dr. Alister Martin, New York City’s health commissioner, offered to NY1 earlier this month. Martin stated that there is “pretty specific evidence that the federal government is not a fan of the work that we’re doing on equity,” but that the city under Mamdani was “not gonna stop doing that work” even if the Trump administration “comes and messes with our money.”
Cassidy warned that the working group could violate Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by potentially creating a hostile environment for Jewish employees, putting at risk $600 million in annual federal funding that the city’s health department receives, which makes up 20% of the department’s budget.
“Given the scale of the NYC Health Department and the substantial federal resources granted to it, it is critical to the state of New York that the Department ensure that its activities remain consistent with federal law and the conditions attached to federal funding,” Cassidy wrote. “Prioritizing a political agenda over compliance with these requirements risks both federal funding and the public health of New York City residents. Federal taxpayers should have confidence that funds intended to support public health services are administered in compliance with those obligations.”
“These recent developments raise serious questions about whether the agency is taking appropriate steps to ensure that programs and initiatives supported by federal funds are administered in compliance with applicable federal law and directives governing diversity, equity, and inclusion,” he continued.
“The Department’s focus on the Israeli Palestinian conflict and the creation of an internal ‘working group’ organized around a particular ethnic or national group underscores the need to ensure that workplace initiatives are administered in a manner that does not leave other employees — in this case, Jewish employees — feeling excluded or marginalized,” he wrote.
Cassidy and his committee are currently undertaking an investigation of Mamdani and his management of city affairs related to antisemitism, and he has similarly warned Mamdani that billions in federal funding for the city’s public schools could be at risk.
Mamdani’s office did not respond to Jewish Insider’s request for comment on the letter.