Hundreds of mental health and addiction programs across the country were thrown into chaos this week after the Trump administration abruptly terminated thousands of federal grants, effective immediately.
Termination letters were sent out late Tuesday night, impacting a wide range of services, from overdose prevention to mental health training for school staff.
The U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), which oversees the grants, stated in the letters that the funding no longer aligns with the administration’s priorities.
“This cruelty will be measured in lives lost,” said Ryan Hampton, founder of Mobilize Recovery.
Thousands of Programs Gone Overnight
Three sources told NPR they believe the cuts affect more than 2,000 grants, totaling close to $2 billion in lost funding.
The National Association of County Behavioral Health and Developmental Disability Directors echoed that estimate in a letter to members, calling the scale of the cuts unprecedented.
SAMHSA has not responded to multiple requests for comment.
Andrew Kessler, who leads Slingshot Solutions, a consulting firm that works with mental health and addiction providers nationwide, said the impact was immediate and widespread.
“We are definitely looking at severe loss of front-line capacity,” Kessler told NPR. “[Programs] may have to shut their doors tomorrow.”
He confirmed reviewing termination letters from organizations as far apart as Salt Lake City, El Paso, and Detroit.
A Blow to Communities on the Edge
Ryan Hampton said his organization lost $500,000 overnight.
“Waking up to nearly $2 billion in grant cancellations means front-line providers are forced to cease overdose prevention, naloxone distribution, and peer recovery services immediately, leaving our communities defenseless against a raging crisis,” Hampton said.
He added: “This cruelty will be measured in lives lost, as recovery centers shutter and the safety net we built is slashed overnight. We are witnessing the dismantling of our recovery infrastructure in real-time, and the administration will have blood on its hands for every preventable death that follows.”
The letters stated the grants were terminated as of Jan.13 and that “costs resulting from financial obligations incurred after termination are not allowable.”
Deep Cuts on Top of Earlier Reductions
This latest move adds to the growing strain on mental health providers after the Republican-controlled Congress approved deep Medicaid cuts last year, which also hit addiction and mental health programs especially hard.
Regina LaBelle, a Georgetown professor and former acting head of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, called the SAMHSA grants “lifesaving.”
“From first responders to drug courts, continued federal funding quite literally save lives,” LaBelle said.
“The overdose epidemic has been declared a public health emergency and overdose deaths are decreasing. This is no time to pull critical funding.”
Kessler said providers are scrambling to keep services running, but many won’t be able to for long.
“In the short term, there’s going to be severe damage,” he said. “We’re going to have to scramble.”
Programs for Schools and Future Doctors Also Cut
The American Psychiatric Association (APA) and its Foundation said they were among the groups hit by the cuts.
Two of their major programs were eliminated: the APA’s Workforce Development Initiative and the APAF’s Notice. Talk. Act. at School Program.
“Overnight cuts to thousands of programs nationwide are nothing short of catastrophic, placing millions of Americans with unmet mental health and substance use disorder needs at even greater risk,” APA President Dr. Theresa M. Miskimen Rivera said.
The Workforce Development Initiative supports college and high school students considering careers in psychiatry, and the school program provides free mental health training for K-12 staff.
“We can only imagine the good that the thousands of other programs that were eliminated were doing, and we call on the administration to reinstate the funding immediately,” said Dr. Marketa M. Wills, CEO and medical director of the APA.
Future Uncertain for Many
With no formal explanation from SAMHSA or the Department of Health and Human Services, nonprofits and local governments are left in the dark, unsure whether to lay off workers, shut down services, or try to secure emergency funding elsewhere.