The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is announcing a funding opportunity of nearly $15 million for a three-year federal grant to establish a Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) program that will strengthen the delivery of behavioral healthcare to residents of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities. Funded by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), this program will establish a Center of Excellence for Building Capacity in Nursing Facilities to Care for Residents with Behavioral Health Conditions (Center of Excellence). This builds on President Biden’s State of the Union emphasis on the critical importance of ensuring residents of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities receive high-quality care.
The Center of Excellence is expected to improve overall healthcare in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities by providing direct consultation to staff to increase understanding, improve awareness, reduce stigmatization, and build knowledge and skills for effective resident care. Ultimately, the Center of Excellence will strengthen and sustain effective behavioral health practices and achieve better outcomes for residents who have serious mental illness, serious emotional disturbance, substance use issues, or co-occurring mental health and substance use conditions. It will also ensure accessibility of evidence-based training and technical assistance focused on mental health disorder identification, treatment, and recovery support services.
