‘They need to be given the opportunity not to die’: Amid opioid crisis, federal cuts put harm-reduction efforts at risk

In a Truth Social post Trump wrote in March praising his Department of Government Efficiency budget cuts, he touted the use of a “scalpel” rather than a “hatchet.”

That may come as a surprise to the nearly 49 million Americans who suffer from addiction, according to the 2023 National Survey on Drug Use and Health from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, also known as SAMHSA.

“It’s become very clear that they’re not using a scalpel,” said Emily Hage, CEO of First Call KC, a nonprofit that provides substance abuse prevention, education and harm-reduction resources in the Kansas City area.

Many parts of HHS have been scaled down, eliminated altogether or repackaged into the new conglomerate Administration for a Healthy America, or AHA.

Full article: Harm-reduction providers brace for future of opioid crisis amid cuts