The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) awarded $42.3 million in supplemental funding to states and territories through the Community Mental Health Services Block Grant (MHBG) and the Substance Use Prevention, Treatment, and Recovery Services Block Grant (SUPTRS) to support implementation of the “treatment first” model. It also awarded $2 million to the national office and all 10 regional centers of the Addiction Technology Transfer Center (ATTC) Network to support implementation.

The details: That funding includes:

• $17.3 million to MHBG recipients to help states and territories “build the systems, partnerships, workforce capacity, policies, and technical infrastructure needed to put Treatment First principles into practice.” The funding will support technical assistance, training, policy development, and cross-system coordination.
• $25 million to SUPTRS recipients to “expand capacity for safe, licensed, certified or chartered sober and recovery housing nationwide.” The funding will support training and technical assistance to increase the supply of recovery residences and “strengthen quality and accountability standards that give individuals in recovery greater choice in selecting housing that supports long-term sobriety and self-sufficiency.”
• $2 million to the 10 regional ATTCs and the ATTC National Coordinating Office, designed to work in tandem with the SUPTRS funding. The funding aims to ensure that best practices for workforce training, licensure, certification, charter support, and outcome measurement tools needed for successful implementation are shared nationwide to expand “safe, certified housing that supports self-sufficiency and long-term sobriety.”

Reminder: The funding aims to advance President Trump’s Executive Order on Ending Crime and Disorder on America’s Streets and the Best Practices Toolkit: Addressing Homelessness and Addiction Through Treatment First.

• But: Evidence supports the harm reduction and Housing First approaches these efforts aim to move away from.

Meanwhile: SAMHSA also announced supplemental funding to Alabama, Kansas, and West Virginia to strengthen the role of faith-based organizations in substance use prevention as part of their Strategic Prevention Framework-Partnerships for Success grants.

• The states are using the funding to work with faith communities to build new partnerships, conduct needs assessments, and co-develop prevention strategic plans with faith leaders.