Teen Drug Use Survey Threatened by Federal Layoffs \ Newslooks \ Washington DC \ Mary Sidiqi \ Evening Edition \ A vital U.S. government team behind the National Survey on Drug Use and Health has been laid off, raising concerns about future data analysis and public health policy decisions. The survey tracks drug, alcohol, and mental health trends and is essential for guiding addiction treatment programs and federal funding. Experts warn that sidelining this data could hinder efforts to combat the opioid crisis and understand adolescent behavior.
Drug Use Survey Layoffs – Quick Looks
- Entire Team Laid Off: All 17 analysts behind the national drug use survey were let go this week.
- Survey Still Mandated: HHS says data collection will continue despite the internal overhaul.
- No Clear Plan for Analysis: It’s unclear who will interpret the 2024 data or how it will be used.
- Critical for Public Health: The survey guides addiction prevention, mental health research, and funding decisions.
- Impact on Opioid Response: Federal grants to fight addiction rely on this data.
- Post-Pandemic Baseline at Risk: 2024 would be the first reliable year since pandemic disruptions.
- HHS Reorganization Underway: SAMHSA is being folded into a new agency under RFK Jr.’s health leadership.
- Experts Sound the Alarm: Analysts fear valuable behavioral health data will go unused.
- Used Daily by Advocates: Groups like the Partnership to End Addiction rely on it for research and outreach.
- Key Recent Findings: Most teens avoid drugs, LGBTQ+ youth face higher risks, cannabis use continues rising.
Deep Look
A cornerstone of America’s behavioral health monitoring system may be in jeopardy after the entire 17-member federal team responsible for analyzing the National Survey on Drug Use and Health received layoff notices this week. The decision, part of a broader reorganization of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), has sparked fears among experts and public health advocates that critical data used to guide addiction and mental health policy could go unanalyzed.
The survey, now in its 50th year, is a nationally representative study of about 70,000 people conducted annually, gathering data on drug use, alcohol consumption, mental health, and other behavioral health indicators. It is a primary source of information used by state and local governments, research institutions, and nonprofits to shape treatment programs and allocate federal grant money, particularly for efforts targeting the opioid epidemic.
While HHS insists the survey will continue, concerns remain over the loss of institutional knowledge and analytical capacity.
“Every person working on it was let go,” said Jennifer Hoenig, the recently dismissed director of the Office of Population Surveys.
“We want people to understand what is being lost in our country if we don’t have it.”
Hoenig’s team was preparing to analyze the 2024 data, which would be the first reliable post-pandemic baseline, after COVID-19 disrupted previous years’ collection efforts. Without experienced analysts in place, experts fear the data could “sit on a shelf” instead of being translated into actionable insights for public health planning.
Andrew Nixon, a spokesperson for HHS, said in a statement that the survey remains “a vital contribution to the advancement of America’s behavioral health.” He emphasized that the reorganization will make the department “better positioned to execute on Congress’s statutory intent.” Still, Nixon did not clarify how the analysis of the 2024 data will proceed or who would take over the laid-off team’s responsibilities.
The move comes amid a sweeping overhaul of federal health services, including the planned consolidation of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) into a new Administration for a Healthy America, spearheaded by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Critics worry that the restructuring, while potentially streamlining bureaucracy, may also disrupt crucial public health operations in the process.
Organizations like the Partnership to End Addiction say the survey’s data is used “on a near daily basis” for creating educational materials, tracking behavioral health trends, and designing effective prevention campaigns.
“It provides a more complete picture than just looking at overdose deaths,” said Lindsey Vuolo, a senior policy director at the Partnership.
“We depend on this data to make evidence-based decisions.”
Dan Meyer, a legal expert in security clearances who also specializes in public health law, warned that bureaucratic moves often have unintended consequences.
“Data is critical in solving public health problems,” Meyer said.
“When you lose access to it, you lose the ability to fill treatment gaps, which could cost lives.”
In recent years, the survey has revealed key behavioral health trends, including:
- 70% of adolescents did not use illicit drugs or drink alcohol in 2023.
- Older men (60+) were more likely than women to have a substance use disorder, while women were more likely to experience major depression.
- LGBTQ+ youth were nearly twice as likely as straight peers to suffer from substance use disorders.
- Cannabis use among adults nearly doubled from 2002 to 2022, rising from 11% to nearly 22%.
These insights help shape everything from school health education programs to veterans’ mental health services and state-level addiction treatment strategies.
While HHS maintains that the reorganization is an effort to modernize behavioral health policy infrastructure, critics say the loss of experienced analysts could leave a dangerous data gap. The potential delay or mismanagement of survey findings threatens to impair how effectively the country responds to its mental health and substance abuse challenges, especially as overdose deaths remain at historically high levels.
As courts and Congress weigh the broader consequences of HHS’s restructuring, public health experts are urging the Biden administration to ensure the preservation of the National Survey on Drug Use and Health—not just its data collection, but the critical interpretation and dissemination that make the numbers meaningful.
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