Health
Federal Agency Dedicated to Mental Illness and Addiction Faces Huge Cuts
Every day, Dora Dantzler-Wright and her colleagues distribute overdose reversal drugs on the streets of Chicago. They hold training sessions on using them and help people in recovery from drug and alcohol addiction return to their jobs and families.
They work closely with the federal government through an agency that monitors their productivity, connects them with other like-minded groups and dispenses critical funds that keep their work going.
But over the last few weeks, Ms. Wright’s phone calls and emails to Washington have gone unanswered. Federal advisers from the agency’s local office — who supervise her group, the Chicago Recovering Communities Coalition, as well as addiction programs throughout six Midwestern states and 34 tribes — are gone.
“We just continue to do the work without any updates from the feds at all,” Ms. Wright said. “But we’re lost.”
By the end of this week, the staff of the agency, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, could be cut by 50 percent, according to senior staff members at the agency and congressional aides who attended briefings by Trump officials.
With just under 900 employees and a budget of $7.2 billion for large state grants and individual nonprofits that address addiction and mental illness, SAMHSA (pronounced SAM-sah) is relatively small. But it addresses two of the nation’s most urgent health problems and has generally had bipartisan support.
The agency’s broad mandate includes overseeing 988, the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, which fields millions of calls through state offices; regulating outpatient clinics that dispense opioid treatment drugs such as methadone; directing funds to drug courts (also called “treatment courts”); and producing nationwide annual surveys of substance use and mental health issues.
It provides best-practice training and resources for hundreds of nonprofits and state agencies, and helps establish centers that provide opioid addiction prevention, treatment and social services. It is also a federal watchdog that closely monitors the spending of taxpayer-funded grants for mental health and addiction.
Both President Trump and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the federal health secretary, whose portfolio includes SAMHSA, have been outspoken about addressing the country’s drug crises. Mr. Trump has invoked overdose fatalities as a rationale for imposing tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China. Mr. Kennedy has often discussed his ongoing recovery from heroin addiction. During his presidential campaign, he produced a documentary about the impact of addiction in the United States that also explored different treatment options.
While the rates of U.S. overdose fatalities remain high, they have been declining consistently since 2023. Many drug policy experts say SAMHSA is the federal agency most directly responsible.
“Cutting SAMHSA employees without understanding the impact is extremely dangerous, given the behavioral health crises impacting every corner of our nation,” Representatives Paul D. Tonko of New York and Andrea Salinas of Oregon wrote in a letter to Mr. Kennedy, signed by 57 Democratic House members.
Reductions in staff, they argued, could lead to a surge in relapse rates, a strain on the health care system and poorer health outcomes overall.
Asked about the pending cuts, a spokeswoman for SAMHSA replied: “The important collaboration facilitated by SAMHSA’s regional offices continues, regardless of personnel changes, and SAMHSA staff remain diligently responsive to partners around the nation.”
On Tuesday, the Department of Health and Human Services announced that it was reducing its number of regional offices, which house agencies that include SAMHSA, from 10 to four.
Proposals to shrink staff sizes across government departments are due Thursday. In the last month, SAMHSA’s staff was reduced by roughly 10 percent through layoffs of workers in their probationary period, a designation that included people recently promoted to new positions. Last weekend, the agency’s employees and other personnel overseen by Mr. Kennedy received emails offering $25,000 to those who left their jobs by this Friday, characterized as a “voluntary separation.”
In interviews, a dozen current and former SAMHSA employees, including executives, said the threat posed by layoffs and policy shifts is beginning to be felt at sites everywhere, from the heart of troubled city neighborhoods to rural outposts. Some newer SAMHSA projects scarcely underway are in jeopardy, like one to map Chicago housing projects to better distribute the lifesaving overdose medication naloxone, and others to establish systems to speedily relay suicide intervention calls to on-the-ground response teams.
They said it was unlikely that funding for centers focused on treating the mental health or substance use disorders of specific populations, such as Black and L.G.B.T.Q. communities, would be reauthorized.
Regina LaBelle, the former acting director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy during the Biden administration, called the staff cuts “ shortsighted.”
“It might reduce numbers, but it also reduces oversight and accountability,” she said, by hindering the agency’s ability to monitor grant funds and collect behavioral health data.
During the Biden administration, the agency’s budget and staff grew substantially, a development that mental health and addiction experts described as an attempt to make up for persistent underfunding. In 2019, just before the onset of the pandemic, SAMHSA had about 490 full-time staff members and a budget of roughly $5.5 billion. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there were 70,630 overdose deaths that year.
In March 2020, the pandemic bore down. Over the next three years, annual overdose fatalities soared to well over 100,000. Mental health problems surged, including deaths by suicide. The increases to SAMHSA’s budget had bipartisan support.
Now there is widespread talk that the Trump administration may fold SAMHSA into another health agency or return staff numbers and grant funds to 2019 levels, even though rates of overdose deaths remain significantly higher than in 2019. According to the most recent C.D.C. update, between September 2023 and September 2024, roughly 87,000 people died of drug overdoses.
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The release of an updated food pyramid this week has sparked mixed reactions from doctors and dietitians.
One of the most noteworthy shifts in the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans — announced by HHS officials during a Jan. 7 press conference at the White House — is a greater emphasis on “high-quality proteins,” including red meat and eggs, as well as full-fat dairy.
The new guidelines focus on “real, whole, nutrient-dense foods,” and a dramatic reduction in highly processed foods, added sugars, refined carbohydrates and unhealthy fats.
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“Protein and healthy fats are essential and were wrongly discouraged in prior dietary guidelines,” Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said during the press conference. “We are ending the war on saturated fats.”
Nick Norwitz, a Harvard- and Oxford-trained researcher known for his work in metabolic health, shared his reaction to the new guidelines.
The release of an updated food pyramid this week has sparked mixed reactions from doctors and dietitians. (realfood.gov)
Despite how the new pyramid is presented, he noted, the actual guidelines for saturated fat consumption haven’t changed, as they still state that, “in general, saturated fat consumption should not exceed 10% of total daily calories.”
The intake of unprocessed whole foods rich in saturated fat, especially dairy fat, tends to be associated with improved health outcomes, according to Norwitz.
RED MEAT CAN HELP YOUR MOOD IF PART OF A HEALTHY, BALANCED DIET, STUDY SUGGESTS
“Full-fat dairy — especially cheese, for example — tends to be associated with lower BMI, reduced rates of diabetes and even reduced dementia risk,” he told Fox News Digital. “There are, of course, nuances — but ‘ending the war’ on saturated fat seems reasonable.”
Risks vary, experts say
Experts cautioned about the potential health risks of exceeding the recommended intake of saturated fat, including higher rates of LDL “bad” cholesterol, which is known to increase the risk of cardiovascular disease.
“The recommendation to limit saturated fat to 10% of total calories is based on the research showing that higher rates increase LDL cholesterol and associated risks for cardiovascular disease,” Sherry Coleman Collins, a food allergy dietitian and expert from the Atlanta metropolitan area, told Fox News Digital.
One of the most noteworthy shifts in the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans is a greater emphasis on “high-quality proteins” — including red meat and eggs — as well as full-fat dairy. (iStock)
Nutrition should be personalized and is dependent on multiple factors, she said, including age, gender, activity level and genetic risk factors.
“The total saturated fat an individual might safely consume is influenced by their size and total calorie needs, as well as potentially genetic differences,” Coleman Collins said.
Norwitz agreed, adding that “the specific food source and interaction with the unique host and their broader dietary context should take the spotlight.”
Dr. Pooja Gidwani, a double board-certified doctor of internal medicine and obesity medicine in Los Angeles, pointed out that not everyone has the same “tolerance” for saturated fats.
“If increasing saturated fat leads to a meaningful rise in LDL cholesterol or ApoB (Apolipoprotein B, a protein found on the surface of certain cholesterol-carrying particles in the blood), that intake level is excessive for that individual, regardless of improvements in weight or glucose metrics,” she said.
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“This personalized approach becomes increasingly important in midlife and beyond, when cardiovascular disease becomes the dominant driver of morbidity and mortality and when tolerance for cumulative atherogenic (artery-clogging) exposure is lower.”
For those who need to reduce LDL cholesterol or have a higher cardiovascular risk, the American Heart Association recommends an even lower amount of saturated fats — less than 6% of total daily calories.
Experts cautioned about the potential health risks of exceeding the recommended intake of saturated fat, including higher rates of LDL “bad” cholesterol. (iStock)
Gidwani also cautioned that diets emphasizing saturated fat could crowd out fiber and unsaturated fats, “both of which play independent roles in cholesterol clearance, insulin sensitivity, gut health and inflammation.”
“Saturated fat-heavy patterns are also calorie-dense, which can quietly undermine long-term weight management if intake is not carefully regulated,” she added.
Not all saturated fats are equal, experts say
The effects of saturated fat depend on what specific foods are being consumed, according to experts.
“I would recommend choosing minimally processed or unprocessed forms of foods,” said Tanya Freirich, a registered dietitian nutritionist in Charlotte, North Carolina. “For example, in place of a hot dog — which has additives, nitrites, sodium and fillers — consuming a chicken thigh would be a much better choice.”
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Gidwani reiterated that the amount of processing plays a big role.
“Processed meats are consistently associated with worse cardiometabolic outcomes and represent the clearest category to limit,” she said. “The risk here is not only saturated fat, but also sodium load, preservatives and the broader dietary pattern they tend to accompany.”
“Full-fat dairy — especially cheese, for example — tends to be associated with lower BMI, reduced rates of diabetes and even reduced dementia risk,” an expert told Fox News Digital. (iStock)
Unprocessed red meat, the doctor said, can fit into an overall healthy diet in smaller amounts, particularly when consumed alongside fiber-rich plants and minimally processed foods.
“However, from a longevity perspective, it should be viewed as optional rather than foundational, especially for individuals with elevated cardiovascular risk,” she added.
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When it comes to dairy, Gidwani noted that fermented options are “metabolically more favorable” than butter or cream.
“However, saturated fat from dairy is still not necessary to prioritize for metabolic health or longevity,” she said. “Excessive reliance on dairy fat can displace healthier fat sources without offering clear long-term benefit.”
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Overall, the doctor recommends unsaturated fat sources, including extra virgin olive oil, nuts, seeds, avocado and omega-3-rich fish, as primary dietary fats.
“These consistently support lipid profiles, insulin sensitivity and vascular health,” Gidwani said. “Saturated fat can exist within a balanced diet, but it should remain secondary rather than emphasized.”
Why the big picture matters
Saturated fat is just one piece of a much wider nutrition puzzle, the experts agreed.
Unprocessed red meat can fit into an overall healthy diet in smaller amounts, particularly when consumed alongside fiber-rich plants and minimally processed foods, one expert said. (iStock)
“Our heart health is not determined by one type of fat or one type of cholesterol, but the sum of many parts — our entire diet, our exercise habits, our stress and so much more,” Freirich said.
She recommends consulting a registered dietitian for guidance on unique dietary needs based on age, gender, activity level and medical history.
“Our heart health is not determined by one type of fat or one type of cholesterol, but the sum of many parts — our entire diet, our exercise habits, our stress and so much more,” said an expert. (iStock)
New Jersey-based dietitian Erin Palinski-Wade, author of “2-Day Diabetes Diet,” added that the message should be to focus more on overall patterns.
That means “plenty of fiber-rich plants, lean protein at every meal (including those that also contain fiber, such as nuts and seeds) and a reduction in overall intake of added sugars.”
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“That change will drive true health improvements,” she said.
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Missing out on adequate sleep could be taking years off your life.
New research from the Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU), published in the journal Sleep Advances, found that poor sleep may shorten life expectancy more than other lifestyle factors like diet, exercise and loneliness.
The researchers analyzed nationwide CDC survey data, identifying trends associated with average life expectancy by county, according to a press release.
NEW HEALTH WARNING ISSUED OVER POPULAR SLEEP AID MILLIONS TAKE NIGHTLY
The study found that lack of adequate sleep led to higher mortality risk in every U.S. state and was the top behavioral driver compared to other factors, only behind smoking.
Senior study author Andrew McHill, Ph.D., associate professor and director of the Sleep, Chronobiology, and Health Laboratory in the OHSU School of Nursing, noted in a statement that he did not expect sleep to be “so strongly correlated” to life expectancy.
Poor sleep is directly correlated with shorter life expectancy, the study reveals. (iStock)
“We’ve always thought sleep is important, but this research really drives that point home: People really should strive to get seven to nine hours of sleep, if at all possible,” he said.
“This research shows that we need to prioritize sleep at least as much as we do [in] what we eat or how we exercise.”
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In a previous interview with Fox News Digital, Dr. Daniel Amen, psychiatrist and owner of Amen Clinics in California, emphasized how important sleep is for brain function and longevity.
Researchers suggest people should prioritize sleep just as much as diet and exercise. (iStock)
“Sleep is so important,” he said. “When you sleep, your brain cleans and washes itself. And if you don’t sleep seven to nine hours at night, your brain looks older than you are — there’s less blood flow, and it increases inflammation in the brain.”
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“Your brain doesn’t have enough time to get rid of the toxins that build up during the day.”
Lack of adequate sleep can lead to poor decisions and foster toxic cycles, the doctor warned.
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“If your brain has less activity in the front part, not only are you tired, but you’re also hungrier, and you’re more likely to not make the best decisions,” he said.
“Which, of course, will stress you out, and then you won’t sleep well the next night.”
A doctor suggests being “purposeful” about going to bed and waking up each day. (iStock)
One small change to promote longevity and brain health is to try getting to bed 15 minutes earlier, Amen suggested.
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“Really be purposeful about not being distracted by Netflix or your phone,” he said.
“And when you get up in the morning, say to yourself, ‘Today is going to be a great day.’ The more positive you are, the better your brain.”
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