Shaheen, Hassan Help Pass Second Year Increase in Opioid Response Funding

**As Members of the Common Sense Caucus, Shaheen and Hassan Negotiated a Promise of $6 billion Over 2 Years Nationally for Opioid Response Efforts in Bipartisan Budget Agreement as Well as a Change in the Funding Formula to Prioritize Hardest-Hit States like NH**

(Washington, DC) – U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) issued the following statements after voting for appropriations legislation for fiscal year (FY) 2019 that funds the Departments of Defense and Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and other agencies.

“This bill provides a substantial increase in treatment funding for next year and will help the state move forward with its plan to provide lifesaving care for the thousands of Granite Staters who are struggling with substance use disorders,” said Senator Shaheen. “Communities in New Hampshire need critical federal assistance to battle this epidemic. Far too many Granite Staters are suffering with substance use disorders and can’t find care. My number one priority in Congress has been to help New Hampshire respond to this crisis and save lives. As a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I’ll continue to prioritize bipartisan efforts that deliver additional resources until we overcome this epidemic.”

“Working across party lines, we were able to secure a significant increase in federal funding for New Hampshire to combat the opioid crisis for the remainder of this fiscal year, and we need to get this funding bill to the President’s desk without delay to ensure that this funding increase continues next year,” said Senator Hassan. “While this additional funding is a critical next step to help those struggling with substance use disorder get treatment, we know that this fight is far from over. I’ll keep working every day to strengthen prevention, treatment, and recovery efforts and to ensure that those on the front lines of this crisis have the support they need to help save lives.”

The Labor-HHS funding bill provides $1.5 billion for Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) funding for State Opioid Response Grants, the same level that was included in the omnibus government spending bill for fiscal year 2018. As the Senators previously announced, New Hampshire will be eligible to apply for $22.9 million in federal grants for fiscal year 2018, and through today’s legislation, $22.9 million for fiscal year 2019, resulting in annual funding for New Hampshire that is more than seven times higher than the $3.128 million the Granite State received for grants in fiscal year 2017.

As members of the Common Sense Caucus, Shaheen and Hassan negotiated this substantial increase in State Opioid Response Grant funding as well as a set-aside account for states with the highest mortality rates from opioid overdoses. In addition, adhering to a request from the New Hampshire congressional delegation, SAMHSA recently agreed to change its funding formula and also limit the number of states eligible for the set-aside funds to a targeted list of states to ensure hardest-hit states like New Hampshire get their fair share of funding. Together, the funding increase that was negotiated in the budget agreement, and these subsequent changes to allocate additional resources to states with exceptionally high overdose death rates, led to the substantial increase in resources for New Hampshire that was announced by Senators Shaheen and Hassan in June.

###