WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS), announced $45,774,615 to West Virginia from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) State Opioid Response (SOR) grant program. Since the creation of the SOR grant program in 2018, Ranking Member Capito has secured over $200 million for West Virginia to fight the opioid epidemic.

“With help from the SOR grant program, West Virginia has made strides in the fight against opioids with education and by expanding the discussion around Substance Use Disorder and Medication Assisted Treatment,” Ranking Member Capito said. “Recent provisional data shows a historic drop in opioid deaths in West Virginia and the SOR grant program has been crucial in this achievement. As Ranking Member of the Labor-HHS Appropriations Subcommittee, I’ve worked hard to ensure our state is eligible to receive resources necessary to combat this crisis, not just a population-based amount. This has included new solutions like the provision I authored to prioritize funds for states hardest hit by the crisis. However, this battle is not over and I will continue to fight to make sure our state has what it needs to finally overcome this crisis.”

BACKGROUND:

This funding amount could have been considerably less were it not for language authored by Ranking Member Capito that would ensure states most impacted by the opioid crisis would receive more funding for their efforts. Specifically, Ranking Member Capito raised this issue in 2017 during the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) budget request hearing when initial discussions began on how to effectively assist the hardest-hit states. Prior to this change, funds were distributed by population, which often put West Virginia at a disadvantage for necessary resources. Ranking Member Capito’s language set aside 15% for states with the highest mortality rates from opioid use. 

West Virginia has used SOR grants for several purposes, including to:

  • Improve coordination across prevention and treatment activities.
  • Support the statewide behavioral health infrastructure such as through county coalitions.
  • Increase awareness that addiction is a disease and reduce the stigma around medication assisted treatment (MAT) through a statewide media campaign.
  • Sponsor treatment for individuals without insurance or insurance that does not cover substance use disorder (SUD).
  • Expand access to MAT at all regional jails.
  • Train over 1,000 professionals on effective MAT practices especially on pregnant and postpartum women, opioid overdose survivors, and hospital emergency departments.
  • Broaden the curriculum at the three medical schools in the state.
  • Establish Quick Response Teams (QRT).
  • Provide after-hours transportation and expanded route access to cover more rural areas through the West Virginia Public Transit Authority to allow individuals to access treatment services.

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