Policy Trump administration sends letter wiping out addiction, mental health grants

tryptakid

tryptakid

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Three sources said they believe total cuts to nonprofit groups, many providing street-level care to people experiencing addiction, homelessness and mental illness, could reach roughly $2 billion. NPR wasn't able to independently confirm the scale of the grant cancellation. The U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSHA) didn't respond to a request for clarification.

"We are definitely looking at severe loss of front-line capacity," said Andrew Kessler, head of Slingshot Solutions, a consultancy firm that works with mental health and addiction groups nationwide. "[Programs] may have to shut their doors tomorrow."
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What this will ultimately mean remains unclear - however the administration has been keen on reducing focus on housing first and harm reduction focused interventions in favor of long-term compulsory treatment programs which his administration has signaled will be more likely to receive funding opportunities moving forward.
 
tryptakid said:



What this will ultimately mean remains unclear - however the administration has been keen on reducing focus on housing first and harm reduction focused interventions in favor of long-term compulsory treatment programs which his administration has signaled will be more likely to receive funding opportunities moving forward.
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Is this an effort to cut costs?
 
Doesn't seem like it to me, although I can't find any official statements about it at all. So who knows what the official reasoning is.
I would imagine that the money will soon go to addiction treatment organizations whose practices are more in line with what the Don and his goons think should be happening, like the aforementioned compulsory treatment programs. Or maybe not.
The whole thing is cruel and reckless either way.
 
Tralfamadorian said:
Doesn't seem like it to me, although I can't find any official statements about it at all. So who knows what the official reasoning is.
I would imagine that the money will soon go to addiction treatment organizations whose practices are more in line with what the Don and his goons think should be happening, like the aforementioned compulsory treatment programs. Or maybe not.
The whole thing is cruel and reckless either way.
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My guess is this aligns with the broader focus of RFJ Jr on camps for people with mental health and substance use disorders - psychiatric medication dependence - homelessness etc.

Programs that facilitate compulsory treatment as an option will likely see funding opportunities (I believe there is funding set aside in the BBB for this purpose) while programs focused on harm reduction will see draconian cuts.

Suboxone, needle exchange, methadone, drug testing, naloxone distribution etc. will likely all face some kind of funding cuts with a goal of trying to push people away from harm reduction and continued substance use
 
In a twist of brighter news - apparently since many of the grants that were to be cut were originally signed as policy by Trump in 2018 and enjoy broad bipartisan support - the white has is now reversing the cuts:

rollcall.com

White House reverses $2 billion cut to mental health, addiction grants

Many of the affected grant programs had bipartisan support and President Donald Trump has supported them in the past.
rollcall.com rollcall.com

A day after the Department of Health and Human Services implemented a late-night rollback of $2 billion in mental health and substance use funding, an administration official confirmed late Wednesday that the grants are now being restored.

The cancellation of Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration funding had blindsided grantees and sent shock waves through organizations that provide anti-drug and mental health services.

About 2,000 grantees who rely on these funds to operate were informed by form letters Tuesday night that funding was being cut off, according to sources familiar with discussions. They were notified of the funding changes in letters that cite “non-alignment with SAMHSA priorities.”

The cutbacks primarily affected discretionary grant programs that often enjoy bipartisan support. President Donald Trump has supported them in the past, notably signing a wide-ranging 2018 opioid prevention and treatment law during his first term and its reauthorization just last month.

It started to become clear late Wednesday that these cuts were going to be reversed.



“My understanding is that there has been an intervention at the White House,” Senate Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations ranking member Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis. “It might be a one-day issue.”
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