';
CLOSE
Tags Posts tagged with "HHS"

HHS

0 1314

On November 13, 2025, President Trump signed the executive order “Fostering the Future for American Children and Families,” an initiative to be led by the Office of the First Lady. The order is aimed at supporting children transitioning out of foster care into adulthood by modernizing the out-of-date child welfare system.

The Secretary of Health and Human Services must take the appropriate actions for the following within the next 180 days:

  • Update regulations, policies, and practices to improve data collection;
  • Promote modernization of child welfare information systems;
  • Expand States’ use of technological solutions; and
  • Publish an annual scorecard to measure and evaluate State-level achievement.

The HHS Secretary, in coordination with the First Lady and heads of other applicable offices, are to establish a “Fostering the Future” initiative to develop partnerships with agencies, private sector organizations, academic institutions, and non-profit entities to aid in the transition out of the foster care system. The order also calls for the development of an online platform to assist in the navigation of the transition, and an increase in the role of Education and Training Vouchers and educational scholarships. This initiative will be funded by the reallocation of funds returned by the States from Federal programs designed to assist in the transition out of foster care, but further details have not been clarified.

The final section of the Executive Order outlines the role of HHS in coordination with the Director of the White House Office of Faith and the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, to:

“(a) take appropriate action to address State and local policies and practices that inappropriately prohibit participation in federally-funded child-welfare programs by qualified individuals or organizations based upon their sincerely held religious beliefs or moral convictions; and (b) take appropriate actions to increase partnerships between agencies and faith-based organizations and houses of worship to serve families whose children have been placed in foster care or are at risk of being placed in foster care.”

This order explicitly encourages partnerships with faith-based organizations and removes barriers for faith-motivated foster/adoptive families. While faith-based groups currently play a significant role in the foster care system, this order increases ethical tensions regarding what safeguards exist to protect foster youth who come from non-religious or different religious/cultural backgrounds from pressure to conform.

Further concerns with this order lay with language regarding “biological truths.” This term implies that LGBTQIA+, non-binary, or gender non-conforming individuals somehow conflict with science and is used to delegitimize trans and nonbinary identities. There is concern that partnerships with faith-based and other community organizations may not align with youth’s identities, especially older youth in the LGBTQIA+ community. Further guidance will be needed to ensure that any partnerships with faith-based organizations must be voluntary and respectful of each youth’s identity.

Additional concerns arise regarding equity of family selection and pairing/matching systems. Preferential selection of faith-based foster/adoptive families may lead to “religious filtering.” Potential foster/adoptive parents may be selected not on their capacity to care or their qualifications, but on religious affiliation or ideological alignment — which could lead to unfair exclusion of qualified non-religious or differently religious households. Upcoming policy changes could undermine equity and non-discrimination in the foster care system.

RCPA will keep abreast of developments on this issue and further guidance for agencies and individuals involved in the foster care system.

Please contact Emma Sharp with any questions.

0 512

Early this year, the FASD Respect Act was introduced in the Senate to authorize and modify programs administered by the Department of Health and Human Services to address fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD), and became a provision of the SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Reauthorization Act. The bill sought to establish FASD Centers for Excellence to support FASD prevention through screenings, public awareness, and trainings at a local and state level. In September, Congress passed the SUPPORT Act, and last week the President signed it into law, which officially authorizes the FASD Respect Act.

The legislation will allow the US Department of Health and Human Services to promote and fund FASD education and awareness, as well as the promotion of FASD resources. Beyond funding and program expansion, the FASD Respect Act will task the federal government with addressing FASD through a realigned perspective that supports individuals and families and respects their lived experience.

Please contact Emma Sharp with any questions.

0 2359
Flag of Pennsylvania state united states of america

Pennsylvania will receive more than $83 million from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) in State Opioid Response (SOR) grant funding, which provides critical resources to states and Tribal communities to address the overdose crisis through prevention, opioid overdose reversal medications, treatment (including medications for opioid use disorder [MOUD]) and recovery support. On Monday, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through SAMHSA, announced a total allocation of more than $1.5 billion in Fiscal Year 2025 continuation funding for SOR and Tribal Opioid Response (TOR) grants, with $1.48 billion committed to SOR and nearly $63 million committed to TOR.

This most recent round of funding is the second year of the three-year SOR IV grant cycle, which began October 1, 2024, and runs through September 30, 2027. The Pennsylvania Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (DDAP) manages and distributes SOR funding, which comprises a significant percentage of DDAP’s annual budget.

Since the SOR program began in 2018, states report that nearly 1.3 million people have received treatment services, including more than 650,000 who received MOUD. Through the SOR program, nearly 1.5 million people have received recovery support services. SAMHSA grantees reported distributing more than 10 million opioid overdose reversal kits, with opioid overdose reversal medications being used to reverse more than 550,000 overdoses. Since the TOR program began in 2018, Tribes report that approximately 16,500 patients have received treatment services, and SAMHSA grantees reported distributing more than 116,500 naloxone kits, with opioid reversal medications being used to reverse more than 1,750 overdoses.

Read SAMHA’s press release.

0 6703
Folders with the label Applications and Grants

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), is announcing the notice of a funding opportunity (NOFO) for a new Hepatitis C Elimination Initiative Pilot. SAMHSA estimates awarding between 13 to 40 grants. This grant will be up to three years, and the amount funded will be based on a tiered system explained in the NOFO. Applications are due no later than August 1, 2025.

The purpose of the Hepatitis C Elimination Initiative Pilot is to leverage existing health care institutions’ capacity to prevent, test for, treat, and cure Hepatitis C (HCV) in individuals with substance use disorder (SUD) and/or severe mental illness (SMI), particularly in communities severely affected by homelessness, as well as to gain insights on effective ways to identify patients, complete treatment, and reduce reinfection. Recipients of this program are expected to implement a holistic approach that integrates HCV and HIV testing, comprehensive prevention treatment, and recovery support services for SUD, SMI, hepatitis C, and HIV as needed. Through this initiative, SAMHSA aims to increase the number of individuals who are cured of HCV, reduce the incidence of HCV and HIV in grant-funded communities, and help address the intersection of SUD, SMI, infectious disease, and homelessness in high-need populations across the nation.

The NOFO and application details can be found at the following websites:

This is a unique opportunity for Certified Community Behavioral Health Centers (CCBHC), as many CCBHCs may have the infrastructure to support this grant and may find this pilot to be aligned with their CCBHC programming.

To prepare and submit an application for the Hepatitis C Elimination Initiative Pilot, it is essential to refer to the specific NOFO and the FY 2025 NOFO Application Guide. The Application Guide provides detailed instructions on the application process, including registration requirements, attachment completion, budget preparation, and adherence to federal policies and regulations.

SAMHSA requires applicants to download application forms from the Grants.gov website and may need additional forms from the SAMHSA website. It is crucial to ensure that all required forms are completed and included in the application. Incomplete applications without all the necessary forms may be deemed ineligible for review.

0 1038

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued an alert about a fraud scheme that uses phishing fax requests, which falsely claim to be from CMS staff, to obtain medical records and documentation for auditing purposes.

CMS does not initiate audits by requesting medical records via fax, and if you receive a suspicious request, do not respond. If you have additional questions about this alert, please reach out to Karissa Bjorkgren of CMS via email.

0 1519

The House Energy & Commerce Committee will hold a hearing on June 24, 2025, regarding the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) fiscal year (FY) 2026 budget. The hearing will begin at 10:00 am, and Secretary of HHS Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. is expected to serve as witness and provide testimony on the President’s proposed budget.

The hearing is open to the public and will be livestreamed online using the link above.

0 1030

The Long-Term Services and Supports (LTSS) Subcommittee meeting was recently held on May 7, 2025. During the meeting, a number of presentations were given. In addition to the presentations, the agenda and a document that provided follow-up items from the LTSS Subcommittee meeting on April 2, 2025, were provided.

Members should take time to review the PowerPoint presentations from the meeting below:

The next LTSS Subcommittee meeting is scheduled for June 4, 2025. The meeting will be held from 10:00 am – 1:00 pm in the Forest Room at the Commonwealth Keystone Building, which is located at 400 North Street in Harrisburg, PA. The option to participate virtually is also available.

If attending virtually, please register here. The option to call in is also available by dialing (415) 655-0052, access code 886-801-808#.

123...6Next Page 1 of 6
© 2021 - Rehabilitation & Community Providers Association