Addiction Treatment Centers Largely Left Out of Federal COVID-19 Health Funding

Addiction treatment centers have been largely excluded from federal COVID-19 health care funding, USA Today reports.

Last week 27 mental health and addiction treatment organizations sent a letter to Health and Human Services Deputy Secretary Eric Hargan, requesting a specific behavioral health distribution from the Health Care Provider Fund, which is authorized under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

The fund focuses on the immediate financial impact on hospitals caring for patients with the virus, and aims to help replace lost revenue from cancelled elective procedures, the article notes.

The letter notes that in March, a nationwide field survey demonstrated that 30% of community behavioral health organizations have turned away patients. “Alarmingly, 62.1% of behavioral health centers project that they will only survive financially for three months or less under the current COVID-19 conditions, with six in 10 clinics stating that they have closed clinics or initiated mass staff layoffs,” the letter noted.

A June follow-up survey found that 46% of the organizations remaining believe they can only survive six months or less in the current financial environment.