in effect
Executive Order 14379, signed January 29, 2026, establishes a new White House coordinating body called the Great American Recovery Initiative to organize the federal government’s response to substance use disorder. It directs senior officials across multiple agencies to work together on addiction prevention, treatment, and recovery efforts.
A new White House office — the Great American Recovery Initiative — is created, led jointly by the Secretary of Health and Human Services and a Senior Advisor for Addiction Recovery, with a day-to-day Executive Director reporting to the Domestic Policy staff. The Initiative brings together more than a dozen agency heads, including the Attorney General, Secretaries of Labor, Housing, Veterans Affairs, and Education, the FDA Commissioner, NIH Director, and the Drug Control Policy Director. The group is tasked with recommending ways to align existing federal programs, set measurable public objectives, increase treatment awareness, and direct grants toward prevention and long-term recovery. It must also advise agencies on connecting addiction services across healthcare, criminal justice, workforce, housing, and education systems to reduce fragmentation. The order does not create new funding on its own — implementation depends on existing appropriations.
Americans with substance use disorder — cited as 48.4 million people, or 16.8 percent of the population — are the intended beneficiaries, particularly the roughly 38 million adults who did not seek or perceive a need for treatment in 2024. Federal agencies named in the order must participate in Initiative meetings and follow its guidance when implementing their own programs. States, tribal nations, local governments, community organizations, faith communities, and private-sector groups are designated as consultative partners but are not bound by the order.