Abrupt, Dangerous SAMHSA Grant Cuts Disarm Clinicians on the Frontlines of the Addiction Fight

“In the middle of a global battle against addiction and overdose, the administration has disarmed the frontline fighters – addiction treatment professionals and care teams – by slashing grant funding for lifesaving services. Pulling the rug out from underneath people during a crisis is no winning strategy.  

This unilateral, overnight termination shows that grant funding for lifesaving addiction care is no longer reliable. For the health of Americans and our national security, Congress must put comprehensive coverage of addiction treatment in Medicare and Medicaid, where it has always belonged. 

Until such a plan is in place, funding must be restored to ensure that Americans currently receiving addiction care through these programs do not fall through the cracks and go without the services they deserve.  

To protect America’s health and national security, ASAM calls for: 

• Immediate reversal of these catastrophic grant cuts until a long-term and right-sized funding solution is in place; 

• Immediate congressional action to close dangerous coverage gaps for addiction treatment in Medicare and Medicaid, including expanding Medicare coverage for residential treatment that meets nationally recognized standards; and 

• Immediate commitment from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to make H.R. 1’s work reporting requirement exemptions for Medicaid patients with substance use disorder as broad and expansive as possible. 

Addiction is a chronic, potentially deadly disease. America must treat it as such.”