Regarding the vote in Congress last night of the combined $1.4 trillion omnibus spending bill and $900 billion COVID relief bill:
It appears that some funding for much-needed recovery support services was cut at a late hour, which is very disappointing. However, it also appears that funding for Substance Use Disorders and Mental Health treatment survived in the final budget.
We still do not know the details of the funding or how it will be allocated, we’re assuming through either grant programs or direct allocation to the states.
The fact is, the vote last night was a bi-partisan disappointment for the Georgia Recovery Community. From one perspective, not a single Member of Congress, from any state, led a public charge to ensure that peer led recovery programs were included at the necessary levels. The Georgia Recovery Community learned the valuable lesson that we have not done things we must do to ensure a Member of the Georgia Congressional Delegation is that leader.
There will be more votes and more opportunities to secure funding and expand recovery support programs. There will, likewise, be an enhanced and expedited effort to earn the bi-partisan support of the Georgia Congressional Delegation to position recovery from Substance Use Disorder as a health care priority as it relates to COVID-19 and all subsequent Congressional action.
