The Obama administration on Friday announced plans to dole out $94 million to opioid treatment centers, about a week after the Senate rejected further funding for treatment.
The funding will go to 271 health centers in 45 states, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. The funds would be used to expand the delivery of substance abuse treatment in health centers.
“Expanding access to medication-assisted treatment and integrating these services in health centers bolsters nationwide efforts to curb opioid misuse and abuse,” HHS Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell said Friday.
The administration said the funding can help treatment centers hire about 800 providers and increase the number of patients screened for substance use disorders.
“These awards position health centers to be at the forefront of the fight against opioid abuse in underserved communities,” said Jim Macrae, acting administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration.
The funding, which will come from Obamacare, was announced a day after the Senate voted 94-1 to approve a massive bill aimed at fighting the opioid epidemic.
During the debate over that bill, Senate Democrats tried unsuccessfully to add $600 million in new funding for addiction treatment. The effort was voted down.
Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, the lead sponsor of the bill, said that he supported more resources for treatment but wanted to get the bill through first.
