"It is the first time that I can think of that the US has simply not responded meaningfully to a major disaster," said Jeremy Konyndyk, who ran the USAID Office of US Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) from 2013 to 2016.
He said for the last few decades, with every disaster on this scale, the US would be the largest and most capable team on the ground.
"You've got 75 to 100 people, the dogs and it's a pretty substantial lift \[which\] you've got to get there, operating and excavating piles, within the first really four days."
"The US basically was not there for the rescue window, period. And it's too late," said Mr Konyndyk.
It's unlikely the agency could reactivate logistics contracts in time for a Dart team to Myanmar in time to save lives, he said. "If you wanted to issue new ones, the people who could issue new contracts and do the tenders for that, they've all been fired," explained Mr Konyndak.
The US state department rejects the notion that the cuts have impacted disaster relief in Myanmar.
The department had partners it worked with "that may not require us to be physically present", spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said on Monday.
"With the reform that the government is going through with the lead of President Trump… certain things won't necessarily look the same. But the success in the work and our impact will still be there," she said.
However, Mr Konyndyk described the claim as "fantasy land".
"You can't pull people out of a building virtually, you can't excavate, you can't do live rescues from a collapsed building without boots on the ground," he said.
Chris Milligan, the former USAID mission director for Myanmar, said the rescue capacity available in the United States would double the capacity already on the ground in Myanmar.
"This is the new normal. This is what it looks like when the United States sits on the international sidelines, when the United States is a weaker international player, when it cedes the space to other global players like China," said Mr Milligan.
The state department told the BBC it did not intend to deploy a Dart team to Myanmar, adding it was continuing many existing lifesaving programs and strategic investments that "strengthen our partners and our own country".
A state department spokesperson said: "USAID has contracts in place with Urban Search and Rescue Teams to assist in responding to disasters."
"\[A\] USAID team of humanitarian experts based in the region are traveling to Burma to assess additional needs," the spokesperson continued.
"A Dart is essentially a coordination mechanism. We are able to coordinate with our partners for this specific response without a Dart. Every response is different," added the spokesperson.