HHS releases $1.5 billion for opioid response programs

States and tribes will receive nearly $3 billion over the next 2 years for prevention, treatment and recovery support services for people with opioid use disorders, according to a press release from HHS.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration is now distributing the first-year funds — $1.5 billion.

The State Opioid Response (SOR) and Tribal Opioid Response (TOR) programs will provide access to evidence-based medication, psychosocial services and community support. The 2-year programs will also provide support for stimulant misuse, which the release said was a “new flexibility.”

“Programs such as these are instrumental because they facilitate greater access to evidence-based treatment,” Elinore F. McCance-Katz, MD, PhD, assistant secretary for mental health and substance use, said in the release. “Now, more than ever, this access to treatment for those with substance use disorders is especially critical.”

Funding is distributed across the SOR and TOR programs. The HHS release did not specify disbursal to tribal nations within the U.S., but the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s funding opportunity announcement anticipated $35.9 million in available funding for the TOR program. U.S. territories, including American Samoa, the Federated States of Micronesia, Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, will each receive $250,000 in funding for the first year.

References:

HHS. HHS Releases $1.5 Billion to States, Tribes to Combat Opioid Crisis. https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2020/08/27/hhs-releases-15-billion-states-tribes-combat-opioid-crisis.html. Accessed Sept. 1, 2020.

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Tribal Opioid Response Grants. https://www.samhsa.gov/grants/grant-announcements/ti-19-012. Accessed Sept. 1, 2020.