White House Budget Cuts Mental Health and Substance Abuse Programs

The White House budget for 2018 takes an ax to mental health and most substance abuse treatment programs. The proposal would target SAMHSA, the federal mental health and substance abuse treatment agency, with nearly $400 million in cuts while keeping funding for many initiatives aimed at fighting the opioid epidemic flat.

The budget for SAMHSA cuts the Community Mental Health Services block grant by $116 million and reduces other state mental health grants by $136 million. Substance abuse treatment grants for states would fall by $73 million and public awareness programs would decline by $74 million.

The budget also includes a $600 billion reduction in Medicaid funding over ten years, a program which pays for mental health services for a significant portion of the nation's low income population.  

To learn more about the federal budget and annual spending process, you can attend an ACA webinar on Thursday May 25th at 4 pm ET.  The webinar focuses on funding for school counseling programs but explains the budget process for all federal programs.  You can register for the webinar here.