Behavioral Health Matters to Counties

On July 28, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) released the findings of its annual National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), which provides data on rates of substance use and mental illness at the national, state and local level. 

On April 4, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced it will not allocate $750 million this year for the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) grant program. According to the press release, FEMA will also stop funding BRIC projects that were previously approved and are still underway.

Rural communities face unique health care challenges, from provider shortages to funding disparities. To address these concerns, the U.S. Senate recently introduced two bipartisan bills aimed at improving rural health care access and funding: the Rural Health Focus Act and the Fair Funding for Rural Hospitals Act.

On August 5, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) published an updated list of designated “sanctuary jurisdictions” following the Administration’s Protecting American Communities from Criminal Aliens Executive Order.

On August 1, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced nearly $1 billion in new grant funding to help states, local governments, tribes and territories strengthen disaster preparedness.

On July 16, the Halt All Lethal Trafficking of Fentanyl Act (HALT Fentanyl Act) (P.L. 119-26) was signed into law, marking a major turning point in the nation’s response to the opioid epidemic. The bipartisan legislation permanently classifies fentanyl-related substances (FRS) as Schedule I drugs under the Controlled Substances Act, granting law enforcement the authority to combat the growing threat posed by synthetic opioids. The law’s enactment follows years of temporary extensions that placed these substances under federal control on a provisional basis.