The Great American Recovery Initiative: What Clinicians Should Know

On January 29, 2026, President Trump signed an executive order creating the “Great American Recovery Initiative.” This new initiative aims to improve the federal response to preventing and treating addiction. It will be co-chaired by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., the United States Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), and Ms. Kathryn Burgum, a Senior Advisor for Addiction Recovery. The initiative’s primary goals are to better align federal government programs, advise on federal grantmaking, and implement coordinated strategies to integrate treatment, housing, employment, education, and social services.

As part of the Great American Recovery Initiative, on February 2, 2026, HHS Secretary Kennedy announced a new $100 million strategy targeting homelessness and addiction. Specifically, HHS will establish the Safety Through Recovery, Engagement, and Evidence-based Treatment and Supports (STREETS) initiative, which will include medical stabilization and crisis intervention services, as well as targeted outreach to Americans experiencing homelessness and addiction - attempting to connect them with stable housing.

Additionally, alongside the STREET initiative, HHS announced that it plans to take the following actions:

• Invest $10 million for the Assisted Outpatient Treatment (AOT) grant program to help treat adults with serious mental illness through coordinated, outpatient care;

   

• Distribute the first allocation of 2026 annual block grant awards, amounting to $319 million for comprehensive community mental health services, and $475 million for the Substance Use Prevention, Treatment, and Recovery Services Block Grant program;

   

• Permit HHS’ Administration for Children and Families (ACF) to add all three medications for opioid use disorder as prevention services eligible for federal funding. As a result, States and tribes will be able to receive a 50% federal match to provide buprenorphine, methadone, and naltrexone to parents when their children are at imminent risk of entering foster care but can remain safely in the home; and

   

• Direct the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and ACF to issue a Dear Colleague letter emphasizing that faith-based organizations can participate in both agencies’ programs.

As with any new executive order or federal initiative, their true test will be in their implementation, and, in this case, in their impact on the deadliest addiction and overdose crisis in American history. Additional initiative announcements are expected in the coming weeks.