All schools in Upshur County will close at 1 p.m. today. All B-UHS sporting events today are canceled.

West Virginia gets $35M to fight opioid epidemic

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.V), members of the Senate Appropriations Committee, recently announced $35,080,728 through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to address substance abuse in West Virginia. Funding comes through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and will support the expansion of treatment services, strengthening community efforts to fight the opioid epidemic.

The increased funding through SAMHSA’s State Opioid Response Grants program is the result of a measure Senator Capito authored and Senator Manchin supported to prioritize funds for states hit hardest by the drug crisis. Without this language and based on previous formulas, West Virginia would have received half the amount received this year through the program.

“Recent polling shows half of West Virginia residents have a friend or family member who has been addicted to opioids. The polling confirmed what we have known for a while, this epidemic does not discriminate and impacts every demographic across our state. This funding will support our ongoing efforts to bring an end to the suffering the opioid epidemic has brought to West Virginia. To finally end this epidemic we need a multipronged approach and I am proud that this funding supports that. As a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I will continue advocating for these resources,” Senator Manchin said.

“The opioid epidemic has devastated families and communities across West Virginia,” Senator Capito said. “While we have made significant progress in this fight, it is important that we help deliver even more resources to help continue, expand, and strengthen our efforts to combat the opioid epidemic. I have long argued that states hardest hit by the epidemic, like West Virginia, should receive additional resources, and I am thrilled that I was able to help boost the amount of funding our state and others like ours will receive. Moving forward, I will continue to work with my colleagues and local leaders on the ground to end this epidemic and help those West Virginians struggling with addiction.”

Individual awards listed below:

State Opioid Response Grants

$28,027,511 – West Virginia Dept. of Health and Human Resources
Expanding Access to Quality Substance Use Disorder and Mental Health Service

$440,750 – Womencare, Inc.
$403,250 – Valley Health Systems, Inc.
$310,207 – Tug River Health Association
$309,750 – Shenandoah Valley Medical Systems, Inc.
$296,250 – Community Health Systems, Inc.
$295,750 – Valley Health Care, Inc.
$293,250 – CHANGE, Inc.
$290,000 – Cabin Creek Health Center, Inc.
$285,000 – Belington Community Medical Services Association, Inc.
$285,000 – Bluestone Health Association, Inc.
$285,000 – Camden-On-Gauley Medical Center, Inc.
$285,000 – Clay Battelle Health Services Association
$285,000 – Community Care of West Virginia
$285,000 – Minnie Hamilton Health Care Center, Inc.
$285,000 – Monongahela Valley Association of Health Centers
$285,000 – Monroe County Health Center
$285,000 – Preston-Taylor Community Health Centers, Inc.
$285,000 – Rainelle Medical Center
$285,000 – St. George Medical Clinic, Inc.
$285,000 – Williamson Health and Wellness Center
$282,021 – New River Health Association, Inc.
$241,989 – Roane County Family Health Care
$185,000 – Wirt County Health Services Association
$175,000 – Pendleton Community Care
$110,000 – Lincoln County Primary Care Center
Rural Communities Opioid Response Program

$200,000 – Community Care of West Virginia
$200,000 – Marshall University Research Corporation
Enhancing Behavioral Health Workforce for Health Centers

$200,000 – Community Care of West Virginia
Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training Program

$199,874 – West Virginia University
Rural Health Opioid Program

$179,934 – Community Connections, Inc.

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