Will States Cut Funding for Treatment Centers?

Alcohol and Drug Treatment Funding Cuts?

Cutbacks in the Texas state budget would create problems for the area’s largest drug and alcohol treatment facility. It would mean a longer wait for addicts in need of treatment. Jay Townsend, a recovered drug and alcohol addict of 34 years, would not have a car, a home or a career path that helps other people stay clean. He would most likely be stealing to get high, in jail or dead. That scenario would add more work for police, jail and hospital personnel, said Amy Rhoads Granberry, the director of organizational development at Charlie’s Place.

Each year the drug and alcohol treatment center treats 2,200 in the Coastal Bend area. Most of those patients fall within the federal guidelines for poverty. Charlie’s Place provides medical detox and inpatient treatment at its main facility. It also provides outpatient counseling for addicts in 19 counties. An annual contract from the Texas Department of State Health Services makes up 75 percent of the drug and alcohol treatment center’s annual budget.

For the next fiscal year, which begins on Sept. 1, the Texas health services department proposed to cut the treatment center’s services by 17 percent or $2.01 million. Granberry asked the state to close that gap and attempted to make government officials aware of what less money for Charlie’s Place would mean to the community.

"So when they start hearing of someone not getting into Charlie’s Place because of a wait, it’s probably true," Granberry said.

Granberry’s efforts were rewarded. The Texas Department of State Health Services lowered the gap to 11 percent, which means Charlie’s Place will likely receive $1.86 million, $231,000 short of the current funding for the drug and alcohol treatment center.

"I was pleasantly surprised that they looked at it and decided we needed more money," Granberry said.

Charlie’s Place is one of 89 drug and alcohol treatment centers across Texas that will receive a portion of $74 million in state contracts in the next fiscal year. On average, each drug and alcohol treatment center will receive 15 percent less than the funding for the current fiscal year. Unspent federal money rolled over from previous years has run out.

"We knew those carry-forward funds would run out, and now they have," said department spokesman Chris Van Deusen. "Since those funds are no longer available, we have less money to use for substance abuse treatment contracts for next year."

Texas State Representative Abel Herrero is afraid the funding gap could widen. There is a $18 billion dollar budget shortfall in Texas and Gov. Rick Perry ordered state agencies to cut 5 perecent from their 2010-11 budgets. Perry also asked for an additional 10 percent cut over the next two years. Herrero is trying to ensure those cuts don’t come from substance abuse treatment facilities. Herrero is the vice chairman of the House Human Services Committee, which oversees state contracts for drug and alcohol treatment centers.

"The state needs to prioritize the needs of our community so decisions to cut costs now don’t become more costly down the road," Herrero said. "Charlie’s Place and other organizations like it offer lifesaving services to those in great need and we do not want to diminish their ability to do so."