Lead Republicans in the House of Representatives are questioning federal agency efforts and spending of taxpayer money to help the mentally ill and people prone to committing suicide.
In a letter to Health and Human Services and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Washington), Brett Guthrie (R-Kentucky), and Morgan Griffith (R-Virginia) are asking about funding on a suicide hotline and a newly-created “Office of Recovery.”
Read the announcement and letter below.
| E&C GOP Presses SAMHSA for Details onCovid Spending, Suicide Hotline Rollout, Support for Treating Serious Mental Illness,and New Office of Recovery |
| Washington, D.C. — House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Subcommittee on Health Chair Brett Guthrie (R-KY), and Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Chair Morgan Griffith (R-VA) sent a letter to Dr. Miriam Delphin-Rittmon, the Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Administrator of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), requesting information related to SAMHSA’s COVID-19 supplemental funding, its implementation of the 9-8-8 suicide hotline, to what extent it provides support for treatment for serious mental illness, and its new Office of Recovery. “Mental health conditions—such as anxiety disorders, mood disorders, and schizophrenia—affect a substantial number of adults in the United States. For example, in 2020, SAMHSA estimated that 53 million adults in the United States (21 percent) had any mental illness, including approximately 14 million adults (5.6 percent) who had serious mental illness. Additionally, the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and government response to the COVID-19 pandemic—such as increased social isolation, stress, and unemployment—have intensified concerns that more people are affected by mental health conditions and that people with underlying mental health conditions could experience increased severity of those conditions,” the Chairs wrote. The members asked for information and answers to their questions, which include the below, by April 18, 2023: How much funding was provided to SAMHSA from COVID-19 supplemental funding? What accomplishments would SAMHSA attribute strictly because of the supplemental funding? How much of this supplemental funding has been obligated? How much of this supplemental funding has been expended? What was the supplemental funding spent on? In April 2022 SAMHSA awarded nearly $105 million in grants to states and territories for the transition to 988 and to support call centers. In addition, in December 2021, SAMHSA announced $177 million to support strengthening and expanding the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline network operations and infrastructure. Notwithstanding this total of $282 million funding for 988 during the last fiscal year, the nationwide suicide hotline crashed late last year. Regarding 988, why did SAMHSA seek an increase in funding to further expand 988 after having spent $105 million to expand 988 in December 2021? Why was there an outage on 988 after all the financial support? Given the intensity of SAMHSA’s focus on implementing 988, we are concerned about the adequacy of SAMHSA’s efforts to provide support for clinical treatment to patients with serious mental illness (SMI). How much money has SAMHSA invested in clinical treatments to patients with SMI? |
Miriam E. Delphin-Rittmon, Ph.D.
ONE HUNDRED EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
Congress of the United States
House of Representatives
COMMITTEE ON ENERGY AND COMMERCE 2125 RAYBURN HOUSE OFFICE BUILDING
WASHINGTON, DC 20515-6115 Majority (202) 225-3641 Minority (202) 225-2927
April 4, 2023
Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use
Department of Health and Human Services
Administrator
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration 5600 Fishers Lane
Rockville, MD 20857
Dr. Delphin-Rittmon:
Pursuant to Rules X and XI of the U.S. House of Representatives, the Committee seeks a full accounting from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) for the influx of funds provided through COVID-19 supplemental relief, and more particularly, details on SAMHSA’s performance in launching the 988 suicide-prevention hotline, the extent of SAMHSA’s support for providing clinical treatment for patients with serious mental illness, and SAMHSA’s Office of Recovery.
Mental health conditions—such as anxiety disorders, mood disorders, and schizophrenia—affect a substantial number of adults in the United States For example, in 2020, SAMHSA estimated that 53 million adults in the United States (21 percent) had any mental illness, including approximately 14 million adults (5.6 percent) who had serious mental illness.1 Additionally, the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and government response to the COVID-19 pandemic—such as increased social isolation, stress, and unemployment—have intensified concerns that more people are affected by mental health conditions and that people with underlying mental health conditions could experience increased severity of those conditions.2
1 See Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Key Substance Use and Mental Health Indicators in the United States: Results from the 2020 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, (Rockville, Md.: October 2021). https://www.samhsa.gov/data/release/2020-national-survey-drug-use-and-health-nsduh-releases
2 U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), Mental Health Care: Access Challenges for Covered Consumers and Relevant Federal Efforts, GAO-22-104597, 1 (March 2022), https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-22-104597.pdf
According to SAMHSA’s budget overview, while SAMHSA’s budget authority in FY 2021 was about $5.8 billion, SAMHSA received more than $7.8 billion in budget authority through the COVID-19 supplemental.3
To assist our efforts in learning about SAMHSA’s spending and performance on key issues, please provide the following by April 18, 2023:
- How much funding was provided to SAMHSA from COVID-19 supplemental funding? What accomplishments would SAMHSA attribute strictly because of the supplemental funding?
- How much of this supplemental funding has been obligated?
- How much of this supplemental funding has been expended? What was the supplemental funding spent on?
- How much of this supplemental funding was provided to states? Please provide information for each state to include dollar amounts of fund8ing on a state-by-state basis.
- Provide information about how SAMHSA tracks state expenditures of SAMHSA funds. What did the states spend the supplemental funding on?
- In April 2022 SAMHSA awarded nearly $105 million in grants to states and territories for the transition to 988 and to support call centers.4 In addition, in December 2021, SAMHSA announced $177 million to support strengthening and expanding the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline network operations and infrastructure.5 Notwithstanding this total of $282 million funding for 988 during the last fiscal year, the nationwide suicide hotline crashed late last year. 6
a. Regarding 988, why did SAMHSA seek an increase in funding to further expand 988 after having spent $105 million to expand 988 in December 20217?
3 SAMHSA Budget Justification Fiscal Year 2023, https://www.samhsa.gov/sites/default/files/samhsa-fy-2023- cj.pdf
4 SAMHSA press release, As Part of President Biden’s Mental Health Strategy, HHS Awards Nearly $105 Million to States and Territories to Strengthen Crisis Call Center Services in Advance of July Transition to 988 (April 19, 2022), https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2022/04/19/part-president-bidens-mental-health-strategy-hhs-awards- nearly-105-million-states-territories-strengthen-crisis-call-center-services-advance-july-transition-988.html
5
6 https://www.wkow.com/townnews/politics/states-prepare-for-summer-launch-of-new-988-suicide-prevention- number/article_13c897b6-b235-5ab7-b639-5f42378775a4.html
7
https://www.samhsa.gov/newsroom/press-announcements/20221021/hhs-announces-bsca-funding-states-territories- improve-mental-health-services
SAMHSA press release, HHS Announces Critical Investments to Implement Upcoming 988 Dialing Code for
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (December 2021), https://www.samhsa.gov/newsroom/press-
announcements/202112201100
SAMHSA press release, HHS Announces More Than $100 Million in Bipartisan Safer Communities Act Funds for
States and Territories to Improve Mental Health Services (October 21, 2022),
b. Why was there an outage8 on 988 after all the financial support?
- Given the intensity of SAMHSA’s focus on implementing 988, we are concerned about the adequacy of SAMHSA’s efforts to provide support for clinical treatment to patients with serious mental illness (SMI). How much money has SAMHSA invested in clinical treatments to patients with SMI?
- What progress in providing clinical treatments to patients with SMI was made with these investments?
- We note that in September 2021, SAMHSA launched the Office of Recovery.9 It is unclear to us what was the underlying authority for establishing this office. What authority was used by SAMHSA to launch the Office of Recovery?
- What funds are used to support the Office of Recovery? What were the sources of the funding, and how much funding was contributed from each source?
- What staff are involved in the Office of Recovery? Please indicate which SAMHSA offices were the sources of the staff, and the number of staff from each SAMHSA office transferred to the Office of Recovery.
a. Have staff (both permanent and detailed staff)/programs from the authorized Centers been transitioned to this Office? How many total staff were transitioned to the Office of Recovery? How many permanent staff were transitioned to the Office of Recovery? What SAMHSA offices had reductions in staff and what were the reductions because of transitioned staff to the Office of Recovery? What SAMHSA programs or resources were transitioned to the Office of Recovery? Please identify the sources of staffing and funding for the Office of Recovery that were not the result of SAMHSA or programs being transitioned?
Your cooperation with this request is appreciated. If you have any questions, please contact Alan Slobodin of the Committee staff at (202) 225-3641.
Sincerely,
Cathy McMorris Rodgers
Chair
Energy and Commerce Committee
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