Hhs Staffer Changed Agency’s Voicemail To Domino’s Pizza Message To Protest Flood Of Calls From Animal Rights Activists

A "rogue" unit personnel astatine nan Department of Health and Human Services changed nan automated telephone greeting connected 1 of the agency's numbers to imitate a pizza shop connection aft an influx of protestation callers flooded its lines.

White Coat Waste Project, a MAGA-friendly group advocating against taxation dollars being utilized for animal testing, precocious rallied its supporters to telephone nan DHHS and request that it "cut backing for feline testing" astatine a National Institutes of Health-funded laboratory astatine nan University of Missouri, according to Mediaite.

The societal media station encouraging nan telephone run specifically named DHHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and included a brace of telephone numbers to call.

"RFK Jr holds nan eventual powerfulness to trim nan backing and prevention lives," nan station reads. "It's clip for MAHA (and each of us) to speak up!"

In a follow-up post, WCWP described calling nan agency and getting a telephone consequence that said: "Thank you for calling Domino's Pizza."

"Trump's HHS conscionable laughed successful nan faces of MAHA supporters who want to unopen down Fauci's beagle and kitten torture experiments," nan group wrote earlier describing nan telephone message.

It went on, saying nan Domino's Pizza greeting was "the connection that taxpayers sewage erstwhile they flooded HHS telephone lines yesterday to request that HHS unopen down Fauci’s feline and canine labs."

After playing nan message, nan statement past sent callers to voicemail.

WCWP elder vice president Justin Goodman said that nan DHHS was initially answering calls pinch a quality but initiated nan automated strategy aft nan influx of protestation calls, according to Politico Pulse.

“Torturing puppies pinch our taxation dollars isn’t funny, but group astatine HHS apparently deliberation it is,” Goodman said during a proceeding for nan Senate Committee connected Small Business and Entrepreneurship connected Wednesday.

Andrew Nixon, a spokesperson for nan DHHS, told Politico that nan Domino's voicemail was nan consequence of "an unauthorized action by a rogue worker and not typical of HHS."

He confirmed that nan telephone number nary longer plays nan Domino's Pizza message. It is unclear if nan staffer is still employed pinch nan DHHS.

The Independent has requested remark from nan agency.

In another video posted to its societal media, WCWP played nan pizza connection for Senator Joni Ernst, a Republican, who said nan prank connected protesters was "not okay."

"Actually, it makes my tummy turn," she said.

The DHHS nether Kennedy has been receptive to ending animal testing successful investigation labs. In December, he said nan Trump management is "trying to put an end" to primate testing.

"Across nan Trump Administration, location is simply a displacement to prioritize animal welfare," a wellness section spokesperson told CBS News successful a connection past year. "At HHS, that includes moves to trim unnecessary animal testing requirements and prioritizing human-based research."

While it's apt that astir Americans would for illustration that nary animals are subjected to experiments, researchers who activity successful animal testing opportunity nan problem is that, astatine slightest for now, location are nary viable alternatives to nan practice.

Deborah Fuller, nan head of nan NIH-funded Washington National Primate Research Center, told CBS News that primate testing is basal for processing nan medicines and therapeutics that prevention quality lives.

"The mostly of nan biomedical interventions that we person coming went done a non-human primate astatine immoderate point," she said. "Shutting down a non-human primate investigation program, you're really shooting yourself successful nan foot."