The 2026 National Drug Control Strategy has made a notable shift toward primary prevention—stopping substance use before it ever starts—and reframes what a national approach to substances can look like. We speak with Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) Chief Medical Officer Dr. Roneet Lev and Institute for Behavior and Health (IBH) Vice President Dr. Caroline DuPont about what that shift actually means, why delaying substance use matters so much for the developing brain, how the science of social norming is changing prevention, and why consistent and clear messaging about non-use may be one of the most powerful tools we have.

Dr. Roneet Lev is the White House ONDCP chief medical officer and assistant director in the Office of Public Health. She has served as chief of Scripps Mercy Hospital’s emergency department, president of the California Chapter of the American College of Emergency Physicians, and executive director of Independent Emergency Physicians Consortium.

Dr. Caroline DuPont is vice president of IBH. She was formerly the founding president and principal investigator of DuPont Clinical Research Inc., and she maintains a private practice specializing in anxiety and addiction.

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