WASHINGTON, April 28 (UPI) -- Key U.S. federal health and emergency response jobs remain vacant as the Obama administration addresses its response to the global spread of swine flu.
At the Health and Human Services Department, 15 top positions -- including the secretary's slot and the full-time directorship at the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta -- remain unfilled, while 20 senior-level posts at the Department of Homeland Security are occupied temporarily by career civil service employees, The Washington Post reported Tuesday. Five nominations, including that of former Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius as HHS secretary, await confirmation by the Senate.