HRSA Announces $240M to Integrate MH and SUD Tx into Primary Care & 100M to Grow the Health Workforce

The Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA) has announced $240 million in awards to launch and expand mental health and substance use disorder services in more than 400 community health centers across the country that care for more than 10 million people.

Health centers are trusted community providers and a primary source of care for individuals across the country who are uninsured, underinsured, or enrolled in Medicaid – making them well-positioned to respond to the urgent need for behavioral health services that are high quality, stigma-free, culturally competent and readily accessible.

Of the $240 million to support integrated healthcare, $7,199,941 was allocated to the state of Ohio to support integration of MH and SUD services across 12 health centers. The Ohio awardees include:

  • Axesspointe Community Health Center in Akron, $600,000
  • Christian Community Health Services in Cincinnati, $600,000
  • Community Action Committee of Pike County in Piketon, $599,941
  • Community Health & Wellness Partners in Bellefontaine, $600,000
  • Erie County, $600,000
  • Family Health Services of Erie County in Sandusky, $600,000
  • Healthcare Connection in Cincinnati, $600,000
  • Hopeless Health Centers in Chillicothe, $600,000
  • Muskingum Valley Health Centers in Zanesville, $600,000
  • My Community Health Center in Canton, $600,000
  • Neighborhood Health Association of Toledo in Toledo, $600,000
  • The Ohio State University in Columbus, $600,000

In September, HRSA also announced nearly $100 million in awards to grow, support, and strengthen the health workforce and improve access to quality care in high-need areas across the country. The announcement was made in conjunction with an HHS Health Workforce Roundtable convened as part of HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra’s Health Workforce Initiative.

HRSA’s Workforce investments include:

  • Growing the nursing workforce for acute and long-term care: HRSA is awarding more than $19 million over four years to five schools, including two community colleges, to increase the nursing workforce practicing in acute care settings and long-term care facilities.
  • Increasing the primary care physician workforce in high-need areas: HRSA is providing nearly $12 million in 2024 to three medical schools to help boost the number of primary care physicians in medically underserved rural, and tribal communities.
  • Responding to the nation’s opioid crisis: HRSA is awarding more than $63 million over four years to 32 organizations to train and increase the number of peer support specialists and other community-based providers, such as community health workers, to provide mental health services and family support to children whose parents or guardians are impacted by opioid use disorders and other substance use disorders.  
  • Integrating mental health care in pediatric care: HRSA is providing an additional $4.6 million to existing grantees to expand their efforts to provide pediatricians mental health training and to support pediatricians in conducting tele-consultations with psychiatrists to provide real-time behavioral health support to their child and adolescent patients.

For a list of awards, visit: https://www.hrsa.gov/about/news/fy24-workforce-award-announcements. The State of Ohio received awards in the following areas:

  • Opioid-Impacted Family Support Program (OIFSP)
    • Clark State College, $599,918 over 4 years
    • Ohio University, $2,362,676 over 4 years