A notable mental health advocate is raising alarms as federal workforce cuts hit HHS’ Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration during the ongoing government shutdown, according to an Oct. 15 report from CBS News.
More than 4,000 federal workers have received reduction-in-force notices, including staff at SAMHSA — the agency that funds and manages key mental health services, such as the 988 suicide and crisis lifeline and the community mental health block grant, which funds services insurance cannot.
Sue Abderholden, recently retired executive director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness Minnesota, said the furloughs jeopardize progress in mental health access. “After all these years trying to build the system, we’re not there yet but we’ve made progress,” she said. “I see this as really devastating to the future of our mental health system.”
Programs supported by SAMHSA include Native American mental health services, crisis hotlines, education and outreach, and in-person care at certified community behavioral health clinics. Advocates said the current instability could threaten continued access if funding or administrative functions are disrupted.
