Colorado’s Behavioral Health Administration will lose more than $30 million in federal grants, the majority of which already had been committed to programs including crisis response teams and peer support for people recovering from addiction.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration notified the BHA on Monday that it would claw back four grants totaling $31.5 million.
The state already committed about $24 million of that money to fund specific programs, and had until the end of September to allocate and spend the remaining $7.5 million, BHA spokeswoman Allie Eliot said Wednesday.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment also will lose four grants related to COVID-19 disease tracking, vaccinations and health disparities. The department couldn’t immediately say how much those grants were worth and whether it had committed and spent the money.
“We are concerned that this sudden loss of federal funding threatens Colorado’s ability to track COVID-19 trends and other emerging diseases, modernize disease data systems, respond to outbreaks and provide critical immunization access, outreach and education — leaving communities more vulnerable to future public health crises,” department spokeswoman Kristina Iodice said.
Trump administration officials announced Tuesday that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would take back $11.4 billion in COVID-related funds, most of which went to state and local health departments. The CDC will begin clawing back funds one month from Monday, when it starts to send out grant termination notices.
“The COVID-19 pandemic is over, and HHS will no longer waste billions of taxpayer dollars responding to a non-existent pandemic that Americans moved on from years ago,” the Department of Health and Human Services said in a statement.
Two of the BHA grants referenced COVID-19 in their names, but SAMHSA didn’t immediately respond to questions about whether the clawbacks involved pandemic response funds.
The grants helped to fund about 60 mental health and addiction programs around the state, including services to adults with serious mental illnesses and young people experiencing hallucinations or delusions, Eliot said. The BHA is working with Gov. Jared Polis’ office and the Colorado Attorney General’s Office to determine how it can respond, she said.
“In so many cases, these are life-saving programs and services, and we worry for the wellbeing of those who have come to count on this support,” she said in a statement.
Polis’ office didn’t immediately respond to questions.
Typically, federal agencies only demand that states return money that’s already been spent if the states violated the terms of a grant, such as using it for unapproved expenses. If SAMHSA and the CDC succeed in clawing back their funds, it would add to Colorado’s financial woes. The state already faces a $1.2 billion budget shortfall in the coming fiscal year.
Denver Post reporter Seth Klamann and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
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