Senators call for $2 billion in supplemental SAMHSA funding

As the fourth stimulus bill, the HEROES Act, awaits action by the Senate, 19 senators sent a letter last week to Senate and House leadership calling for increased investments in substance use disorder programs during the COVID‐19 pandemic. The letter, from Senators Tammy Baldwin (D‐Wisconsin) and Jeanne Shaheen (D‐New Hampshire), along with 17 other senators (all Democrats), calls for “$2 billion in funding for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to administer supplemental grant allocations under the Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment (SAPT) Block Grant program and the State Opioid Response (SOR) grant program.”     

NASADAD pushes block‐grant increase for stimulus 4 bill

The National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors (NASADAD) last week wrote to Sen. Patty Murray (D‐ Washington) and Sen. Roy Blunt (R‐Missouri), the Senate co‐chairs of the Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee, asking specifically for the $1.5 billion in supplemental funding as provided by the House in the HEROES Act for the Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment (SAPT) block grant (see “Proposed bill for HEROES Act would give $1.5 billion to SAPT block grant,” ADAW, May 18, https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adaw.32722 ).     

Transitioning SOR to the SAPT BG: Why not?

It's time to think about transitioning the State Opioid Response (SOR) grants to the Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment (SAPT) block grant, Robert Morrison, executive director of the National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors (NASADAD), told the House Energy and Commerce Committee at its March 3 hearing on opioid legislation. The STR and SOR grants went directly to single state authorities (SSAs) in charge of the SAPT block grants — NASADAD members — so this makes perfect sense. These are the officials who best know how funding should be spent in their states — on what substances, including alcohol. Instead of having a designated amount set up for opioids — although that was expanded to include stimulants as well (see “FY 2020 Appropriations: Stimulants added to SOR's $1.5 billion,” ADAW, Dec. 23, 2019, https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adaw.32573 ) — each SSA should just have this funding added permanently to the block grant.     

White House budget request decimates substance use prevention

The White House budget request for fiscal year 2021 for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) proposes to zero out a major prevention program — the Strategic Prevention Framework State Incentive Grant — Partnerships for Success program. This is a cut of $109 million. It recommends using the prevention set‐aside (20%) from the Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment (SAPT) block grant instead. But it doesn't give any more money to the block grant.     

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Co‐Occurring Disorders Can Be Treated Within SAPT Block Grant Advocates Optimistic as Second Chance Act Clears House Committee Doctor's Sentence Highlights Challenges of Methadone Treatment Recovery Month Slated for Elimination by President's Proposed Budget SAMHSA Announces $96 Million in Access to Recovery Grants Briefly Noted Names in the News Coming up     

Senate Appropriations Committee hears about funding needs for SAPT block grant

The opioid epidemic is persisting, calling for the need for more funding, according to testimony on Capitol Hill last month. Mark Stringer, director of the Missouri Department of Mental Health and single state authority (SSA) for the state's Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment (SAPT) block grant. In addition, it's important to transition from opioid‐focused funding to general funding for substance use prevention and treatment in general, via increasing the block grant, he said.     

President's proposed budget would slash treatment and prevention funding

We had a feeling of déjà vu when the White House sent its proposed budget to Congress last week. Similar to past years, the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) would be decimated, moving the $100 million Drug‐Free Communities program to the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP) at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). There's no additional money in the Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment (SAPT) block grant and cuts to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, CSAP and SAMHSA's Center for Substance Abuse Treatment.     

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HHS Gives States Flexibility in Implementing Health Care Reform Center Sees Affiliation Responding to Managed Care, Client Needs The 10 Benefit Categories More Reflections from Readers: Hopes and Fears for 2012 The ‘Last’ House on the Block: Higher Power or Personal Power? SAMHSA's New Recovery Definition Applies to MI and SUD FY 2012 Budget Bill Includes Increases to SAPT Block Grant Briefly Noted Coming up     

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Once‐a‐Week Buprenorphine in Physician's Office Found Effective Drug Court Audit Finds Lack of Data on Outcomes Buprenorphine in a Therapeutic Community Senate Committee Votes to Add $30 Million to Block Grant Senate Appropriations for Block Grant and Other Substance Abuse Funding Letter to the Editor Illegal Activity at Maine Clinic Puts Methadone in Spotlight NAADAC 2006 Award Recipients Announced Briefly Noted Resources Names in the News Business Obituaries Coming Up     

SAMHSA to write new application for new SOR with stimulants included

The addition of stimulants as an allowable use for State Opioid Response (SOR) grants will require a new application, which the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is working on, ADAW has learned. The change was in the FY 2020 appropriations bill passed last month by Congress (see ADAW, Dec. 23, 2019; “FY 2020 Appropriations: Stimulants added to SOR's $1.5 billion,” https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adaw.32573 ), along with funding for other SAMHSA programs, including the Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment block grant (SAPT BG). After the bill passed before Christmas, Washington went away for the holidays.     

SAMHSA refers to streamlining in proposed budget cuts

Last week, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) released its Congressional Justification (CJ), issued by agencies in conjunction with the White House budget request for the next fiscal year. For FY 2020, the White House budget did not request additional money for SAMHSA's Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment (SAPT) block grant, and included cuts to substance abuse prevention (see ADAW, March 18).     

STR grants: How one physician in rural Florida is trying to help

If the State Targeted Response (STR) and State Opioid Response (SOR) grants from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) grants are like an elephant — large, especially relative to funding for addiction treatment in general — they are also almost impossible to generalize about. But seeing one piece in context of the whole is essential in trying to find out where the money is actually going. The money goes to the single state authority (SSA) in charge of the Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment (SAPT) block grant in each state, the person who knows most about what is needed in that state. The funding comes from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). These grants added $2 billion‐plus to addiction treatment services for opioid use disorders for four years — and many expect this number to be doubled. For perspective, the entire SAPT block grant is under $2 billion and has been for decades.     

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RWJF Departure from Addiction Grants Means $50 Million a Year Less for the Field Addiction Clinicians Tread Carefully Amid Medication Options Recovery Inside San Quentin Prison, Training Inmate Counselors What's Happening on Capitol Hill: Block Grant Appropriations Child Welfare Bill Includes $40 Million for FY 2007 for Treatment Advocacy Alert: Bring Parity to a Vote Briefly Noted Business To the Editor Coming Up     

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Two N.J. Programs Join Forces to Capitalize on Economies of Scale, Synergy Wis. Providers Lament State Culture They Say Doesn't Back Treatment HARMD Agenda Worsens Methadone Stigma Issues Vermont Addiction Counselors Under Pressure to Have MH Licenses Police Pay Students for Drug Tips in Controversial Move White House Proposes Level Funding for SAPT Block Grant Briefly Noted State News Business Coming up     

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NAATP Cites $500,000 in Credit Card Charges in Hunsicker Firing Research Findings Assist Prescribers in Spotting Risk Factors for Rx Abuse To Integrate Addiction Treatment, Physicians Call for Collaboration JAMA on Integration Models of Integrated Care Calif. Budget Proposal Would Eviscerate Methadone Treatment WHO Calls for Restrictions on Alcohol Marketing Binge‐Drink Risk Drops Dramatically After Age 25 $210 Million Increase Requested for SAPT Block Grant Briefly Noted State News Coming up     

Proposed bill for HEROES Act would give $1.5 billion to SAPT block grant

With the House of Representatives planning to vote last Friday on the fourth COVID‐19 stimulus package, substance use treatment stands a chance of being included — if the Senate, which at press time was still opposing the measure, as was the White House, goes ahead to approve it as well. The Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act, for about $2 trillion, would finally give some money to states, counties and health care. So far, more than $2 trillion has been spent on stimulus funding, with the field trying hard to be included in each bill (see “NASADAD requests $250 million for Phase 4 stimulus,” ADAW April 13, https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adaw.32688 ).     

CARE Act: $100 billion bill still waiting for any action

The Comprehensive Addiction Resources Emergency (CARE) Act of 2019, introduced in the House of Representatives by the late Rep. Elijah Cummings (D‐Maryland) and in the Senate by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D‐Massachusetts) on May 8, still has a lot of support from the recovery community. But with Representative Cummings' death on Oct. 17 and Senator Warren's energetic campaign for the presidential nomination, it hasn't gotten much attention.