Trump administration’s new ‘treatment-first’ addiction toolkit emphasizes faith, abstinence

The White House on Wednesday introduced a new framework for addressing addiction and homelessness, promoting a 'treatment first' model that prioritizes faith-based interventions and abstinence, while explicitly rejecting harm reduction principles and the 'housing first' strategy of the Biden administration. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said in a statement, 'Treatment must come first. Recovery begins when we connect people with effective care, not leave them trapped in addiction and homelessness.'

The toolkit advocates a holistic approach, including consistent sleep cycles, daily schedules, and making employment a central component. It opposes unconditional housing, citing a study showing veterans in supportive housing had higher rates of drug overdose death. However, 'housing first' has seen notable success in Houston, which moved 25,000 people into homes over a decade, though that program now faces funding challenges. The strategy also favors prioritizing people with lived experience for jobs in homeless outreach. It makes only passing mention of methadone and buprenorphine, medications proven to reduce opioid overdose deaths.