More than $400 million awarded to providers, as Oregon continues historic investment in substance use disorder treatment and recovery services

The Oregon Health Authority & Oversight & Accountability Council prioritized current providers, desperately needed culturally and linguistically specific services, and rural counties keeping existing networks whole across the state at a time when services are most needed.

PORTLAND, Ore. —  At a time when the Federal Government is cutting essential services and proposing cuts to Medicaid, Oregon continues to make historic investments in lifesaving addiction and recovery services. 

The Oregon Health Authority and Oversight & Accountability Council has awarded funds to more than 220 organizations across the state to fuel lifesaving addiction recovery services. Providers received intent-to-award letters from OHA, and are expected to begin contract negotiations soon in order to safeguard against service disruptions.

Grant awards will fund lifesaving services like overdose prevention, detox, treatment, recovery housing, and other essential supports across the continuum of addiction care. This funding comes at a time when Oregon is losing about four people each day to preventable drug overdoses. Thanks to BHRN funding, data shows that nearly 300,000 service encounters have taken place to connect individuals to care — care that would not have been available prior to BHRN funding. 

“This was a difficult process. Stable funding is critical in order for us to address Oregon’s addiction crisis. Last year alone we reunited 112 children with their parents in recovery, and housed over 783 people in our recovery housing in multiple counties. All of our houses have waitlists. This funding will ensure we can continue our work at a time when more people than ever need recovery support,” said Meli Rose of Iron Tribe Network, BHRN Provider in multiple counties.

Many BHRN providers specialize in serving historically underserved populations, including communities of color, tribal nations, LGBTQIA+ individuals, and those in rural areas where specialized care is already difficult to find. 2025-2029 grant funding may become available to providers as early as July, ensuring continuity of services and preventing providers from having to lay off staff or shutter programs due to a gap in funding between grant cycles. Prior to launching the most recent RFGA process, OHA and the OAC worked strategically to revise the funding formula allocation, strengthen the program’s public health focus, and establish a more sufficient funding floor for rural counties.

“The intent of creating statewide Behavioral Health Resource Networks was to cement them as a critical feature of Oregon’s behavioral health system. Providers have demonstrated just how critical the services are that they provide,” said Tera Hurst, Executive Director of the Health Justice Recovery Alliance. “Frontline providers stood up robust programs in 2022, and have worked amid ongoing funding shortfalls to maintain services — all while the demand for services continues to increase. BHRNs provide core services in all of our communities and they need this stable source of funding.”

According to the OHSU Substance Use Disorder Services Inventory and Gap Analysis, there is a 49 percent gap in substance use disorder services needed by Oregonians. 

The Oregon Health Authority received $1.1 billion in funding requests, and had just over $400 million in available funding to award. OHA and the OAC voted to prioritize current BHRN partners and culturally-specific providers. A list of current providers, most of whom have been awarded funding for the next grant cycle, can be found here.