Advocacy Alert: Biden-Harris Administration Awards Grant to Expand Access to Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Services

January 16, 2025

via SAMHSA

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has awarded 14 states and Washington, D.C. with $1 million, one-year Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC) Medicaid Demonstration Program planning grants, with funding authorized by the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act of 2022 to address the ongoing national mental health and substance use disorder crises.

President Biden made tackling the mental health crisis and overdose epidemic key pillars in his Unity Agenda for the Nation. The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act of 2022 has been instrumental to advancing the President’s comprehensive national strategy to transform how we address behavioral health in the United States.

The states selected are Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maryland, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, and West Virginia as well as the District of Columbia. In 2026, up to 10 of these states will be selected to participate in the CCBHC Medicaid demonstration program and receive enhanced Medicaid reimbursement. The CCBHC planning phase assists states in developing their CCBHC certification processes, establish prospective payment systems for Medicaid-reimbursable services, and prepare an application to participate in a four-year demonstration program.

Read the full announcement here.

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