Funding to end immediately for up to 2,800 grantees of US agency that serves thousands seeking help and in recovery
The Trump administration on Tuesday evening unexpectedly canceled up to $1.9bn in funding for substance use and mental health care, which providers say will immediately affect thousands of patients.
“It feels like Armageddon for everyone who’s on the frontlines of the addiction and mental health space,” said Ryan Hampton, founder of Mobilize Recovery, a national advocacy organization for people in and seeking recovery.
“The scope of care that’s disrupted by these grants is catastrophic. Tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of people will die.”
As many as 2,800 grantees through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (Samhsa) received a letter immediately ending their funding – about 26% of Samhsa’s entire budget.
If Donald is fussing about 1.9 billion dollars, then the US is almost certainly broke. Under normal circumstances, 1.9 billion is almost nothing in the federal budget.
I’m sure a country full of guns will be just fine with people losing access to basic mental health services. Nope, no problems there!
Why would we need to spend money on programs fighting substance abuse? We solved the problem by invading Venezuela. Duh.
