A report on the health effects of alcohol, commissioned by the federal government but not released during the Trump administration, was published on June 9, 2026, in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs. The Alcohol Intake and Health Study, conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), indicates that even low levels of alcohol consumption may increase the risk of various diseases and mortality.
The study, which began in 2023, faced controversy, with some members of Congress and alcohol industry representatives claiming that the researchers had an anti-alcohol bias. The Trump administration did not release the final study, and a House Oversight Committee report labeled it “irretrievably flawed,” suggesting that the findings were politically motivated and suppressed due to the influence of the alcohol industry.
The published study found that even one drink per day could raise the risk of serious health issues, including death. Robert Vincent, a former SAMHSA official, stated that the findings were rigorous and commercially threatening. Emily Hilliard, a spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services, noted that federal officials reviewed the study alongside other scientific evidence when updating dietary guidelines, which now recommend reduced alcohol consumption for better health.
The new guidelines, unveiled in January, shifted from previous recommendations that allowed for one or two drinks per day, instead advising Americans to consume less alcohol overall. The SAMHSA report suggested a gender-neutral recommendation of no more than one drink per day for adults who consume alcohol, a conclusion that aligns with findings from another panel in 2020.
The implications of the withheld report raise questions about scientific independence during the Trump administration, which had previously restricted funding for research on topics deemed illegitimate. The administration relied on a separate study by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, which found moderate drinking associated with lower all-cause mortality but also increased cancer risk. In contrast, the SAMHSA report concluded that there were no health benefits from alcohol consumption, highlighting the risks associated with even moderate drinking.