Recidivism reduction, drug treatment programs to draw from SB91-related funds

PALMER — Alaska will see new recidivism reduction and drug treatment programs coming online with two separate grants administered by the Alaska Dept. of Health and Social Services, to be disbursed over the next three years.

The funds were appropriated by the Alaska State Legislature last session under Senate Bill 91, the criminal reform bill signed into Governor Bill Walker on July 11, 2016.

Sarana Schell, public information officer for Alaska DHSS, said the Recidivism Reduction grants, totaling $4,625,000 over three years, were awarded on Dec. 28, 2016.

Moneys from the other grant stream, called Sobering Center, Withdrawal Management and Residential Treatment Services grants, total $6 million over three years, and have not yet been awarded. The Alaska DHSS Requests for Proposal must by law be awarded to a minimum of two grantees. The agency expects to make an announcement on the grant awards sometime in the coming week.

In its RFP, the state agency states, “The need for treatment is substantial. Approximately 62,800 adults are in need of substance use disorder (SUD) treatment in Alaska annually. In FY2013, only 14,500 adults were served statewide through Medicaid and Behavioral Health grants. With the recent passage of both SB 74 Mental Health Reform and SB 91 Justice Reinvestment Reform legislation, the State is moving to address these gaps…”

The current population of Alaska is around 730,000. Using the Alaska DHHS numbers, that would mean nearly one in every 12 Alaskans has a Substance Use Disorder in need of treatment, and around one in 15 has an SUD and is not receiving treatment.