An experimental mental-health and addiction treatment program that has shown early success at combating the opioid crisis at risk of losing its federal funding.
An estimated 9,000 patients could lose access to medication-assisted treatment, and 3,000 clinic jobs could be lost if the funding is not renewed, according to the National Council for Behavioral Health. Some states may feel the impact as early as January, since clinics must give staff 60 to 90 days' termination notice.
Lawmakers in both parties have committed to boosting mental-health and addiction treatment to address the opioid epidemic, but new funding for the behavioral-health clinics initiative was not included in the $8.