SAMHSA's Workforce Cuts & Restructuring

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) cut its staff from about 900 employees to about 600 employees between January 2025 and June 2025. In October 2025, SAMHSA sent termination notices to an additional 100 to 150 employees as part of a second reduction in force. As of July 2026, SAMHSA's workforce remains at roughly half its January 2025 level — approximately 450 employees. Meanwhile, HHS has also eliminated SAMHSA's status as an independent operating division, folding it into the new Administration for a Healthy America (AHA) — a consolidation lawmakers warned would "dilute the program's impact on addiction and mental health" — with program offices merged, eliminated, or transferred to other HHS divisions.