Improving health is our policy
Requires the Secretary of HHS to award grants and cooperative agreements to community mental health programs to provide coordinated and integrated services to special populations through the co-location of primary and specialty care services in community-based mental health and behavioral health settings. Authorizes to be appropriated (but does not delineate a separate Congressional appropriation) $50 million for FY 2010 and such sums as may be necessary for each of FYs 2011-2014.
Though Congress did not expressly delineate separate appropriations to fund these grants, SAMHSA allocated appropriated funds mostly from the Prevention and Public Health Fund (at section 4002) to fund 43 organizations under this initiative (see the 2010 press release). For an overview of the grant program, see here.
2014
October 1, 2014, Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), co-chair of the Senate Community Health Centers (CHC) Caucus, along with a bipartisan group of 65 senators sent a letter (here) urging Senate leaders to continue to support CHCs beyond the Fiscal Year (FY) 2015 budgetary window when the Affordable Care Act (ACA) mandatory Health Center Fund is set to expire.
On October 9, 2014, SAMHSA announced the award of $41 million to “programs to increase the capacity of the nation’s behavioral healthcare workforce.” The grants include programs started under the Obama Administration’s Now is the Time initiative to increase access to mental health services [and] increase the workforce providing care to children and youth and thereby help provide better access to these vital services to children, adolescents, transition-age youth (ages 16-25) and their families.”
On October 9, 2014 the National Health Service Corps (NHSC) released a press release and blog post marking annual Corps Community day (details) and HHS highlighted the role of the ACA funding helped to expand access to primary care – including access to mental and behavioral health care providers. HRSA, which administers the NHSC program, provided roughly “5,100 loan repayment and scholarship awards to clinicians and students, and grants to 38 states to support state loan repayment programs.” Because of the ACA, as well as the preceding Recovery Act, HHS indicates that, “[s]ince 2008, the number of primary care providers in the [NHSC] has more than doubled….and grants through the [NHSC] State Loan Repayment Program have increased nearly 50 percent.”
On October 16, 2014, HRSA announced a roughly $100 million funding opportunity (additional details) soliciting applications under the Health Center Program’s Service Area Competition (SAC). Qualifying organizations “seeking a grant for operational support of an announced service area under the Health Center Program, including Community Health Center (CHC – section 330(e)), Migrant Health Center (MHC – section 330(g)), Health Care for the Homeless (HCH – section 330(h)), and/or Public Housing Primary Care (PHPC – section 330(i))” can apply before Dec. 3, 2014.
On October 24, SAMHSA and the USDA announced the development of an interagency partnership to extend behavioral healthcare capabilities to communities. The project “will build upon collaborations with regional, state, and local public service organizations to improve the gathering, analyses, and sharing of data related to a wide range of mental and substance use disorder issues.” SAMHSA plans to use this information to improve ” improve communities’ immediate and long-term capabilities to gather and share behavioral health information; upgrade systems for tracking behavioral health trends (and the performance of efforts to address them); and enhance systems for responding to acute needs such as those related to emergencies (e.g. natural or man-made disasters, etc.).”
In early Oct., Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), co-chair of the Senate Community Health Centers (CHC) Caucus, along with a bipartisan group of 65 senators sent a letter (here) urging Senate leaders to continue to support CHCs beyond the FY 15 budgetary window when the ACA mandatory Health Center Fund is set to expire.
On Nov. 6, HRSA announced $51.3 million in ACA funding to support 210 health centers to establish or expand behavioral health services for nearly 440,000 people. With grants distributed among 47 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, health centers use these new funds to hire new mental health professionals, add mental health and substance use disorder health services, and employ integrated models of primary care. Earlier this year, the agency awarded $54.5 million in ACA funding for 223 other health centers to expand behavioral health services. A list of awardees is available here.
Throughout November, CMS held webinars and released FAQs as a part of the Transforming Clinical Practices Initiative application process. CMS is accepting applications for cooperative agreement funding for two network systems under this initiative: Practice Transformation Networks and the Support and Alignment Networks.
SEC. 5604. CO-LOCATING PRIMARY AND SPECIALTY CARE IN COMMUNITY-
BASED MENTAL HEALTH SETTINGS.
Subpart 3 of part B of title V of the Public Health Service Act
(42 U.S.C. 290bb–31 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
‘‘SEC. 520K ø42 U.S.C. 290bb–42¿. AWARDS FOR CO-LOCATING PRIMARY
AND SPECIALTY CARE IN COMMUNITY-BASED MENTAL
HEALTH SETTINGS.
‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:
‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligible entity’ means a
qualified community mental health program defined under section
1913(b)(1).
‘‘(2) SPECIAL POPULATIONS.—The term ‘special populations’
means adults with mental illnesses who have co-occurring primary
care conditions and chronic diseases.
‘‘(b) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary, acting through the
Administrator shall award grants and cooperative agreements to
eligible entities to establish demonstration projects for the provision
of coordinated and integrated services to special populations
through the co-location of primary and specialty care services in
community-based mental and behavioral health settings.
‘‘(c) APPLICATION.—To be eligible to receive a grant or cooperative
agreement under this section, an eligible entity shall submit
an application to the Administrator at such time, in such manner,
and accompanied by such information as the Administrator may require,
including a description of partnerships, or other arrangements
with local primary care providers, including community
health centers, to provide services to special populations.
‘‘(d) USE OF FUNDS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For the benefit of special populations,
an eligible entity shall use funds awarded under this section
for—
‘‘(A) the provision, by qualified primary care professionals,
of on site primary care services;
‘‘(B) reasonable costs associated with medically necessary
referrals to qualified specialty care professionals,
other coordinators of care or, if permitted by the terms of
the grant or cooperative agreement, by qualified specialty
care professionals on a reasonable cost basis on site at the
eligible entity;
‘‘(C) information technology required to accommodate
the clinical needs of primary and specialty care professionals;
or
‘‘(D) facility modifications needed to bring primary and
specialty care professionals on site at the eligible entity.
‘‘(2) LIMITATION.—Not to exceed 15 percent of grant or cooperative
agreement funds may be used for activities described
in subparagraphs (C) and (D) of paragraph (1).
‘‘(e) EVALUATION.—Not later than 90 days after a grant or cooperative
agreement awarded under this section expires, an eligible
entity shall submit to the Secretary the results of an evaluation to
be conducted by the entity concerning the effectiveness of the activities
carried out under the grant or agreement.
‘‘(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There are authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this section, $50,000,000 for fiscal
year 2010 and such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal
years 2011 through 2014.’’.
(202) 309-0796
Contact Us