WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on Monday unveiled a far-reaching agenda aimed at reversing addiction, homelessness, and chronic public health failures, rolling out new treatment funding, mental health reforms, food policy changes, and research initiatives under what officials described as a cornerstone of President Donald J. Trump’s Great American Recovery effort.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced a $100 million initiative known as STREETS — Safety Through Recovery, Engagement, and Evidence-based Treatment and Supports — designed to expand treatment-focused responses to addiction and homelessness. The initiative emphasizes psychiatric care, medical stabilization, crisis intervention, and pathways to stable housing centered on long-term recovery and self-sufficiency.
Kennedy said the plan represents a decisive shift away from prior federal strategies that prioritized harm reduction and housing-first approaches without sustained treatment. Substance use disorder among Americans age 12 and older rose from 7.4 percent in 2019 to 16.8 percent in 2024, according to federal survey data, while nearly 80 percent of those affected did not receive treatment.
Alongside STREETS, HHS announced a new $10 million Assisted Outpatient Treatment grant program to support adults with serious mental illness who are unable to engage in conventional care and face heightened risk of homelessness or incarceration. The program operates through civil courts to mandate community-based treatment as an alternative to emergency care, jail, or street homelessness.
The announcements coincide with the distribution of $794 million in federal block grants through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, including $319 million for community mental health services and $475 million for substance use prevention, treatment, and recovery programs nationwide.
HHS also expanded federal support for families affected by opioid addiction, allowing states and tribes to receive a 50 percent federal match to provide three FDA-approved medications — buprenorphine, methadone, and naltrexone — to parents at risk of losing custody of their children due to substance use disorder.
On a separate front, HHS leadership on February 3 praised the American Society of Plastic Surgeons for formally opposing sex-reassignment procedures for minors, citing low-quality evidence and unresolved ethical concerns. The society relied in part on an HHS evidence review concluding that most cases of pediatric gender dysphoria resolve without medical intervention.
That same day, the National Institutes of Health opened a new research office in East Palestine, Ohio, launching a five-year, $10 million initiative to study long-term health effects stemming from the 2023 Norfolk Southern train derailment involving hazardous chemicals. Federal researchers will engage directly with residents to assess potential impacts on respiratory, cardiovascular, neurological, and maternal health.
HHS agencies also moved aggressively on food and technology policy. The Food and Drug Administration announced new enforcement discretion allowing companies to label products as containing “no artificial colors” if they avoid petroleum-based dyes, while approving new naturally derived color additives such as beetroot red and expanded spirulina extract. Progress on removing petroleum-based dyes is being tracked at https://www.fda.gov/food/color-additives-information-consumers/tracking-food-industry-pledges-remove-petroleum-based-food-dyes.
Meanwhile, the Administration for Community Living launched Phase 1 of a national Caregiver AI Prize Competition, offering up to $2.5 million to develop artificial intelligence tools that reduce caregiver burden, improve home-based care, and strengthen the caregiving workforce. More information is available at https://acl.gov/caregiver-ai-competition.
The policy blitz culminated later in the week as Kennedy brought his Take Back Your Health tour to Tennessee, highlighting state initiatives aligned with the Make America Healthy Again agenda and addressing cattle producers at the nation’s largest beef industry gathering.
Taken together, the announcements mark one of the most expansive public health offensives of the Trump administration’s second term, spanning addiction treatment, mental health enforcement, food regulation, environmental health research, and emerging technology — all framed by officials as a decisive break from prior federal approaches.
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