PULSE POINTS
WHAT HAPPENED: President Donald J. Trump issued an executive order targeting city-approved “safe” drug injection sites, potentially forcing their closure.
WHO WAS INVOLVED: President Trump, Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY), OnPointNYC, Mayor Eric Adams, and the New York City Health Department.
WHEN & WHERE: The executive order was issued on July 24, 2023; the injection sites are located in East Harlem and Washington Heights, NYC.
KEY QUOTE: “I urge the Department of Justice to take immediate action and shut down these centers and put to an end once and for all their operations.” – Rep. Nicole Malliotakis
IMPACT: The order could end federal funding for injection sites, expand civil commitment procedures, and prioritize grants for jurisdictions enforcing drug-use prohibitions.
IN FULL
Two allegedly “safe” drug injection sites in New York City may be forced to shut down following a new executive order issued by President Donald J. Trump. Signed on July 24 and titled “Ending Crime and Disorder on America’s Streets,” the order restricts federal funding to “evidence-based programs,” explicitly excluding support for “so-called harm reduction or safe consumption efforts” that it claims “only facilitate illegal drug use and its attendant harm.”
The directive has drawn support from Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY), who is urging federal authorities to take swift action. “I urge the Department of Justice to take immediate action and shut down these centers and put to an end once and for all their operations,” Malliotakis said.
The two sites at the center of the controversy, located in East Harlem and Washington Heights, were opened in November 2021 during the Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) administration in collaboration with the New York City Health Department, and have continued to operate under Mayor Eric Adams. The facilities, managed by OnPointNYC, have remained open despite warnings from then-Manhattan U.S. Attorney Damian Williams that such programs violate federal law.
Malliotakis, a longtime critic of the sites, contends they do more harm than good. “Since 2021, New York City has allowed two illegal drug injection sites to remain open, and it’s time to shut down these illegal facilities to protect public safety and the quality of life for all New Yorkers,” she stated.
Malliotakis recently reintroduced her Defund Heroin Injection Centers Act of 2025, which seeks to permanently cut off federal funding to such facilities by codifying Trump’s executive order into law. In February, she also asked Attorney General Pam Bondi to intervene and close the OnPointNYC-operated sites.
In addition to targeting supervised drug-use sites, Trump’s executive order broadens civil commitment options for individuals with severe mental illness and prioritizes federal funding for jurisdictions that ban open drug use. The order also eliminates federal backing for “housing first” programs that do not include mandatory treatment or recovery services.
Image by Nicola Sap De Mitri.
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