Are The Trump Admin’s Efforts To Combat US Addiction Crisis Actually Working?

August 15, 2026 1:00 PM ET Experts are split on whether the Trump administration’s efforts to confront the U.S.’ ongoing opioid crisis have made significant progress.President Donald Trump has previously vowed to “address the addiction crisis” in the U.S. However, analysts told the Daily Caller News Foundation that while the president’s administration has made major moves to crack down on illicit drug use and overdose deaths across the nation, the government should consider taking further steps, such as bolstering access to evidence-based treatment and prioritizing harm reduction techniques. (RELATED: China’s New Strategy For Selling Drugs to Americans)“The Trump administration deserves credit for recognizing that illicit fentanyl is simultaneously a medical crisis, a transnational organiz