Addiction recovery service providers were left in the lurch on Tuesday after two state agencies informed them that the federal government had terminated grant funding meant to last through September. Now, they’re asking the state to include funding in the state budget that will fill that gap, as New York suffers one of the first of what will likely be many potential cuts in federal funding.
Both the state Office of Mental Health and Office of Addiction Services and Support, known as OASAS, have had access to pots of money from the federal government to help respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. Those revenue streams were approved as part of the COVID Response and Relief American Rescue Plan Act of 2020 and the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, with access to the dollars extended until September 2025 under the Biden administration. The feds provided the Office of Mental Health $129 million and OASAS $198 million to work with, when all the available grant allocations to agencies and partner providers were put together, according to advocates.
But on Monday, both state agencies received notice from the federal government that it had prematurely terminated access to those funds. In turn, the agencies alerted providers on Tuesday that they will not get reimbursed for any further spending. “New York State OMH cannot reimburse or recognize any expenses incurred after March 24, 2025, for these grants as a result of termination,” reads a letter sent to providers on Tuesday. OASAS held a virtual town hall with service providers on Tuesday as well. In presentation slides from that meeting shared with City & State, the agency blamed the federal Department of Government Efficiency for the cuts, which it called “unexpected and concerning,” and said its staff was looking at ways to “mitigate the damage caused by this action.”…