The “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) movement, initiated by Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr., is transforming public health policy across traditionally conservative states, with several measures gaining bipartisan support nationwide. The ensuing MAHA state movements could have far-reaching implications that may significantly impact counselors and the services they provide.
State-Level MAHA Initiatives Gain Traction
What began as Secretary Kennedy’s visionary initiative has evolved into the self-sustaining MAHA movement, now gaining remarkable traction across numerous states implementing their own comprehensive health approaches. Oklahoma exemplifies this momentum, where lawmakers have successfully advanced a substantial legislative package comprising six interconnected bills. This ambitious agenda strategically combines widely supported food safety measures with more politically divisive provisions that directly challenge existing mandatory vaccination frameworks.
Meanwhile, Kentucky has adopted a structured approach by forming a dedicated MAHA Task Force. This body is charged with examining and recommending evidence-based strategies to enhance public health outcomes through nutritional improvements and the reduction of environmental toxic exposure.
Bipartisan Support for Food Regulations
Nearly 20 states have introduced food safety bills from both political parties. This follows California’s 2023 ban on four food additives, which prompted the FDA to subsequently prohibit red dye No. 3 and brominated vegetable oil.
In a significant move toward food safety regulation, West Virginia has enacted legislation banning most artificial dyes and two preservatives from sale, with implementation set for 2028. Simultaneously, the Texas Senate unanimously passed the “Make Texas Healthy Again” bill, which mandates warning labels on foods containing additives prohibited in other jurisdictions and eliminates seven specific additives from school lunch programs.
Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs recently signed landmark legislation prohibiting 11 potentially harmful food additives from all public school meals and vending machines. The groundbreaking bill, which received strong endorsement from HHS Secretary Kennedy, represents a major policy step toward reducing children’s daily exposure to ultra-processed foods linked to various health concerns. This initiative reflects a growing national trend, with Oklahoma’s more comprehensive Senate Bill 4 proposing to ban 21 synthetic chemicals from school food programs statewide.
SNAP Restrictions Gaining Traction
Three Republican-governed states have initiated federal government waiver efforts to restrict the purchase of certain unhealthy foods through their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which provides essential grocery assistance to lower-income Americans. Seven states—Arizona, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Texas, Utah, and West Virginia—have introduced bills to prevent SNAP recipients from using benefits to purchase ultra-processed foods like soda and candy. The Arizona bill has passed and awaits the governor’s signature.
The debate crosses partisan lines, with proponents citing nutrition benefits and critics arguing that these measures penalize lower-income populations who often live in food deserts with scarce and expensive nutritious options. These critics maintain that addressing structural barriers to nutrition, such as improving food access and affordability, would be more effective than imposing purchase limitations.
Beyond Food Additive Safety Policy
MAHA’s influence extends into more controversial domains. Lawmakers in states like Florida, Montana, and Tennessee have introduced bills to limit or eliminate fluoride mandates. Utah has become the first state to ban fluoride in public water systems.
Several states are also considering measures to roll back vaccination requirements.
Implications for Counselors
The MAHA state movements could significantly impact counselors:
Nutrition and Mental Health: Counselors may need to incorporate more nutrition education into their practice as diet–brain connections receive greater recognition.
Medicaid/Insurance Changes: Shifts in health policy could affect coverage structures and client access to mental health services.
School-Based Practice Concerns: Changes to health education create both opportunities and challenges for school counselors, with some legislation potentially constraining evidence-based approaches.
Treatment Approach Challenges: As health policies become politicized, counselors may need to navigate ideologically driven client perspectives and requests for alternative treatments.
Funding Opportunities: Health taxes on items like sugary beverages could create new revenue streams for mental health initiatives in some communities.
Increased Polarization of Mental Health Approaches: As health policies become increasingly politicized, counselors may need to navigate more ideologically driven client perspectives on treatments, medication, and therapeutic approaches.
Alternative Treatment Advocacy: MAHA’s support for treatments, despite conflicting evidence, suggests growing public acceptance of non-traditional interventions. Counselors may face more clients requesting support for alternative approaches to mental health.
Integration With Physical Health: The movement’s emphasis on physical health determinants could accelerate integrated care models and opportunities where counselors work alongside medical groups.
Substance Use Treatment Approaches: States taking stronger stances on substances, like alcohol, through taxation may simultaneously invest more in related mental health and substance use disorder treatment.
Ethical Dilemmas: Counselors may increasingly need to navigate between divergent public health messaging, evidence-based practice standards, and client beliefs about health interventions.
These developments highlight how MAHA-related policies focused on nutrition and food safety and environmental toxins have emerged as unusual islands of cross-party collaboration within today’s divided political environment. However, while the general goals receive bipartisan support, significant disagreements persist regarding the scientific foundations underlying specific policy recommendations.
NBCC will provide updates on MAHA-related bills passed by state legislatures and potential implications for counselors.
