A Statement from Andrew Picard on behalf of Stepping Stone of San Diego
Published: Friday, August 8, 2025
Our Mission is Under Attack in New Ways
As Executive Director of Stepping Stone, I am compelled to speak out against President Donald Trump’s executive order signed on July 24. This policy directly threatens the evidence-based, affirming recovery services that have helped LGBTQ+ individuals build lasting futures for nearly 50 years. President Trump’s recent executive order prioritizes funding for states that block treatment and recovery programs, expand involuntary institutionalization, and criminalize homelessness—punishing people instead of providing treatment and housing.
This executive order isn’t just bad policy; it’s a direct assault on everything we know works for LGBTQ+ recovery. Our community already faces substance use disorders at rates 2-4 times higher than the general population, and this order will drive the most vulnerable further from the help they desperately need.
The Numbers Tell the Story
This order threatens 274,224 individuals experiencing homelessness nationally—many of whom are LGBTQ+ survivors of family rejection and discrimination. LGBTQ+ individuals are 120% more likely to experience homelessness than their heterosexual peers, yet research consistently shows that LGBTQ+-specific treatment programs achieve significantly better outcomes than institutional approaches.
The real cost of this misguided policy extends far beyond dollars.
- Criminalization is costly and ineffective. Arrests, sweeps, and institutionalization not only deepen trauma, they fail to solve substance use or homelessness. They also drain public resources, costing two to three times more per person annually than treatment and housing programs.
- Studies consistently show that recovery programs with housing works – it reduces arrests, hospital visits, and unplanned shelter stays while promoting faster and more sustainable recovery. More importantly, forced institutionalization increases trauma and destroys trust—the very foundation of effective recovery. For LGBTQ+ individuals who have already faced rejection and discrimination, institutional settings recreate the exact trauma that drives addiction in the first place.
More importantly, for LGBTQ+ individuals who have already faced rejection and discrimination, institutional settings recreate the exact trauma that drives addiction in the first place.
What Actually Works: Healthcare, Not Handcuffs
We don’t need theories about what works because we live it every day. Our comprehensive model saves lives and saves money through voluntary, affirming treatment that sees LGBTQ+ identity as strength, not pathology. We provide integrated services addressing substance use, mental health, and housing simultaneously. We offer peer support from others who understand the intersection of identity and addiction. We deliver trauma-informed care that heals rather than retraumatizes.
This Hits Home for Us
At Stepping Stone, we serve exactly the population this order targets: LGBTQ+ individuals navigating addiction recovery, many of whom are also experiencing homelessness. This executive order tells our clients who are courageously working toward recovery, that their healing doesn’t matter. That their identity doesn’t matter. That cages are more important than care.
This is deeply personal for us because we know our clients. Many come to us after experiencing discrimination in mainstream healthcare settings. They need voluntary, affirming treatment that respects their autonomy and addresses the specific trauma that LGBTQ+ individuals face. This executive order pushes in the opposite direction – toward forced institutionalization that will retraumatize the very people we’re working to heal.
The LGBTQ+ Community Faces Unique Dangers
This executive order poses specific threats to our community that mainstream organizations may not understand. LGBTQ+ people were once institutionalized simply for existing as queer. This order risks returning to those dark practices under the guise of “public safety.” In institutional settings, LGBTQ+ individuals face disproportionately high rates of assault and abuse. Forcing our community into these environments is not treatment – it’s persecution.
Perhaps most damaging, this order will drive our community away from all services, not toward healing. LGBTQ+ individuals already avoid healthcare due to discrimination fears, and policies that criminalize poverty and addiction will only deepen that mistrust.
Our Commitment Remains Unshakeable
Stepping Stone will continue providing what our community needs: safe, affirming spaces where recovery and identity go hand in hand, evidence-based treatment that addresses the whole person, voluntary services that respect individual autonomy and choice, and community-centered healing that builds resilience and connection.
We will not abandon our clients to institutional settings that deny their humanity. We will not accept policies that criminalize poverty and addiction. We will not stop fighting for the comprehensive, compassionate care our community deserves.
This is About More Than Politics—This is About Lives
To our clients: You are safe with us. Your recovery matters. Your identity is celebrated here, not hidden or “fixed.” We will keep fighting for your right to heal with dignity.
To our community: We need your support now more than ever. When federal policy fails, local action becomes crucial. Your advocacy, your donations, and your voice can protect the services our community depends on.
To our partners: Healthcare providers, referral sources, and community organizations—now is the time to stand together. LGBTQ+ recovery services aren’t a political issue; they’re a public health necessity.
How You Can Protect LGBTQ+ Recovery
Support evidence-based care by donating to organizations providing voluntary, affirming treatment. Advocate with local officials for policies that support housing and treatment over criminalization. Share the truth that recovery works best when people feel safe and respected.
Demand better by contacting representatives and demanding protection for proven LGBTQ+ recovery programs. Support local funding initiatives that fill gaps left by federal cuts. Speak up when you see policies that punish poverty and addiction instead of addressing root causes.
We’ve spent 50 years proving that recovery flourishes when LGBTQ+ individuals can heal without hiding who they are. We won’t stop now.
Recovery without compromise. Healing that honors identity. Community that saves lives.
That’s what we stand for. That’s what we’ll keep fighting for.
– Andrew Picard
Executive Director, Stepping Stone of San Diego