The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has awarded 18 cooperative agreements worth approximately $146 million over six years to provide comprehensive community mental health services for children and youth with serious emotional disturbances and their families.
These grants will be used to implement a system of care approach to services, based on the recognition that the needs of children with serious mental health issues can best be met within their home, school, and community, and that families and youth should be the driving force in the transformation of their own care.
"Experience has shown that children with serious emotional disturbances and their families benefit from an integrated approach to care and services," said SAMHSA Acting Administrator Eric Broderick. "The awards we announced represent a wise investment that both helps preserve families and protect every child's right to a future."
The programs selected for these cooperative agreements can receive up to $1 million in year 1, up to $1.5 million in year 2, up to $2 million in years 3 and 4, up to $1.5 million in year 5 and up to $1 million in year 6. In addition, an increasing ratio of non-federal dollars is required from each organization to match the program's federal dollars.
In a separate award, SAMHSA gave $20.8 million in 23 grants over three years to address gaps in substance abuse treatment and recovery support services in communities with emerging drug problems.
Two types of grants were announced. The first category is designed to address service gaps for American Indian/Alaska Native and Asian American/Pacific Islander communities by expanding and/or enhancing substance abuse treatment service capacity. The second category is framework-driven and is designed to provide support to local organizations working to create recovery-oriented systems of care.
The programs selected for grants under the first category can receive up to $250,000 each year, over the course of three years. The programs selected for grants under the second category can receive up to $400,000 each year, over the course of three years. First year total funding is approximately $6.9 million.