On the Hill…

Budget Proposal

The Biden Administration has released its proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2022, and in the process has called for an historic investment in recovery support services. While the President’s budget is more proposal than policy- and serious work remains to be done to make these proposals a reality- we are inspired by the document and the administration’s call for an investment in these services that are so desperately needed in communities across the country.

Block Grant Funding

The White House has called for a significant increase in the Substance Abuse Prevention & Treatment Block Grant, the first such increase in almost 15 years. The jump from $1.85 billion to $3.5 billion, almost a 100% increase, contains a landmark provision: 10% of the block grant, which funds state SUD activities, will be set aside for spending solely on recovery support services.

Faces & Voices has advocated for close to two decades for this change. Our attention now turns to Congress to enact legislation that will make this change a reality. While the budget proposal is merely a proposal, it signifies the position of the White House on policy matters, and just as important, is an indicator of what the White House deems as a priority.

Building Communities of Recovery Program (BCOR)

The budget proposal also recommends increases in other programs that will benefit recovery support services, and their communities. The Building Communities of Recovery Program (BCOR) is recommended for a doubling of its budget, from $10 million to $20 million. The Recovery Community Services Program fared even better, with a proposed increase to $5.1 million (up from $2.4 million).

Just so you know…

HUD and the Recovery Community

While SAMHSA is the “home” government agency for SUD policy and funding, there are programs across government that have an impact on our work. The Department of Housing and Urban Development is responsible for a program that invests $25 million in recovery housing annually, ever since the passage of the SUPPORT act in 2018. The Recovery Housing Program (RHP) allows States and the District of Columbia to provide stable, transitional housing for individuals in recovery from a substance-use disorder.

The funding covers a period of not more than two years or until the individual secures permanent housing, whichever is earlier. The program has allocated funds to 28 grantees, including 27 States and the District of Columbia. The FY 2022 budget fully funds this program once again.

CDC & Recovery

The Center for Disease Control also plays a role in our work.

CDC’s FY 2022 request of $19,500,000 for Infectious Diseases and the Opioid Epidemic is $6,500,000 above the FY 2021 Enacted level. This increase will expand activities to target the infectious disease consequences of the public health crisis involving injection drug use, including viral hepatitis, HIV, and bacterial and fungal infections. This funding offers support for jurisdictions to address infectious disease vulnerabilities related to injection drug use.

In addition, CDC plans to expand support for syringe services programs and strengthen national communication capacity on the effectiveness and safety of syringe services programs.  It seeks to strengthen state and local capacity to detect and respond to infectious disease clusters and prevent further transmission, improve testing and linkage to care for infectious diseases related to injection drug use, and increase linkage to substance use disorder treatment at healthcare encounters for drug use related infections.

The Work Continues…

Juneteenth & Race Equity

Faces & Voices of Recovery would like to acknowledge that, On January 1, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing all enslaved people. Nearly two and a half years later, on June 19, 1865, the enslaved residing in Texas received news of their freedom. Juneteenth marks the day when federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, to take control of the state and ensure that all enslaved people be freed. On June 17, 2021 President Joseph Biden signed a law making Juneteenth an official federal holiday. Faces & Voices of Recovery recognizes Juneteenth as a national holiday, and we honor it as the day all slaves in America became free.

On this important day, we are proud to release the following document regarding Race Equity. It is the culmination of a year-long examination and thoughtful reflection on our collective role in the recovery community’s pathway toward race equity. We are grateful to our partners in this endeavor for their painstaking work. We also extend an open invitation to any organization who would like to join us in this work.

We believe there is ample opportunity to heal.

The work continues.