Public health and addiction experts are raising concerns over President Donald Trump’s proposed budget, warning that sweeping cuts made to treatment and prevention programs could reverse progress in addressing the opioid crisis in the U.S., The New York Times reported May 13.
Here are five notes:
- The administration’s budget proposal seeks to eliminate over $1 billion in funding for national and regional addiction services. Experts say the timing is concerning as overdose deaths have recently shown a decline, partly due to expanded treatment access.
- The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the main federal agency focused on addiction and mental health, has lost about half of its staff to layoffs under the Trump administration. The agency is expected to be merged into a new and broader health agency, raising concerns over addiction services losing priority.
- Public health experts say the U.S. is just beginning to see sustained reductions in overdose deaths due to expanded access to naloxone, peer support and sober housing.
“It would be a tragedy if we defund these programs without fully understanding what’s working and then overdose rates start to climb again,” said Matthew Christiansen, MD., an addiction medicine physician in Huntington, W.Va. - The proposed budget would also end funding for harm-reduction strategies, including syringe exchange and naloxone distribution. Over 320 behavioral health experts signed a letter to congressional leaders decrying cuts to “community-based naloxone distribution, peer-outreach programs, drug-use-related infectious disease prevention programs and drug test strip programs.”
- Beyond the proposed budget, if Republican-backed Medicaid cuts move forward and are enacted, millions of Americans could lose access to addiction treatment altogether.
