Trump cuts: What’s next for Kansas mental health, substance use treatment programs?

Mental health and substance use treatment providers in Kansas are scrambling after the Trump administration pulled $7 million in federal grants from the state.

Much of the funding was set to expire in the coming months. But, with nearly two-thirds of grant funding coming from the federal government, according to a newly released statewide assessment, those who work on treatment and prevention are worried about what may come next.

“This funding has been critical in supporting prevention, treatment, and recovery services for Kansans affected by mental health and substance use challenges, particularly as we continue to address the long-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic,” KDADS spokesperson Cara Sloan-Ramos said in a statement to The Eagle.

The cuts were part of $11 billion in cancellations nationwide through the Health and Human Services Administration last month.

In Kansas, 46 agencies had funding cut, according to the Kansas Department of Aging and Disability Services. Those programs now have been canceled, are on pause or have been reduced.

Effect of cuts in Wichita, Sedgwick County

In Wichita, crisis housing navigators through the United Way of the Plains helped get people leaving mental health treatment and the chronically homeless into housing.

In the two years the program has been operating, 81% of people it’s helped have been able to stay housed, according to the United Way.

Its staff has been cut to two navigators, instead of three, because of the funding cut.

“A lot of what you see when people are expressing concerns about homelessness, they’re expressing concerns about people that are walking down the street talking to themselves, damaging property… a lot of times there’s a lot of mental illness that goes into that,” Matt Lowe with United Way said.

“So when we take away funding from that, from people who have been otherwise stably housed with support, there’s likely to be an increase of people experiencing severe mental illness that are going to be out on our streets.

“So the more that the federal government continues to continue to chip away at these programs, the more unstable our overall system will be.”

Also in Sedgwick County, a Comcare program that helped late teens and early adults through their first episodes of psychosis — a proven method to help alleviate future episodes — now has an uncertain future.

It has seen a drastic increase in the amount of people helped, going from 38 patients total in 2024 to 28 in the first quarter of this year.

The county received $331,171 to create the program and hire four full-time employees. It had yet to spend $116,302 of those grant funds when it received notice about the cancellation.

The county will decide over the next two months whether it will continue to fund the program on its own.

“COMCARE is evaluating the future of this service now that funding has been terminated,” Comcare Executive Director Joan Tammany said in a statement to The Eagle.

Rural Kansas communities also affected by cuts

The cuts also directly affect rural communities in Kansas who often get overlooked for other grants to address such issues.

The Kingman County Health Coalition, just west of Wichita, had been getting ready for a mass direct mail campaign to let county residents know what resources are available to help address substance use issues.

Had the coalition given its print shop approval to begin printing mailers a day earlier, the small coalition would have been on the hook for thousands of dollars.

“It kind of put the damper on any future plans or ideas we might have had to use the grant funds for,” coalition president Melinda Hageman said. “We’re also kind of exploring other future grant possibilities… Although I think all of us are feeling a little bit skittish right now with whether that money would even be available in the future.”

Coalitions similar to Kingman’s that directly reach out to area residents were also being set up in other rural communities with the help of DCCCA, a non-profit organization that provides social and community services. The future stability of those coalitions is now uncertain.

“Anytime funds are removed from communities, there is an impact,” Chrissy Meyer with DCCCA said.

Providers worry about potential for further cuts

CKF Addiction Treatment, based in Salina, helps nearly 4,000 people across the state receive addiction treatment services. It was one of the many providers that lost funds through the HHS cuts.

“What I might ask is to implore the Kansas congressional delegation to protect the state opioid grants and the block grants, because we feel like with everything that’s already happened, they’re next on the chopping block,” CKF chief executive Kara Fiske said, referring to other federal funding in the state.

Nearly two-thirds of substance use disorder funding in the state comes from the federal government through various grants.

“[Those cuts] literally can’t occur, because it would be tragic for our patients,” Fiske said. “There’s no alternative backstop or funding available if the block grant or [state opioid grants] are cut.”

In states without Medicaid expansion, including Kansas, it’s more difficult for people to receive affordable mental health and substance use treatment services, according to a new report from Georgetown University.

Not getting people into treatment can lead to more emergency rooms visits and jail stays at taxpayer expense, Fiske said.

“We have research that shows that for every dollar invested in substance abuse, it saves $4 in health care costs and $7 in law enforcement costs,” she said. “So substance use treatment costs an average of $1,500 per person and is associated with a cost offsetting of $11.5 thousand to these other areas. So it’s a seven to one benefit.”

Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly also warned of further cuts to mental health treatment services at a recent groundbreaking ceremony for a mental health hospital that’s under construction at at MacArthur and Meridian.

“We can’t ignore what’s happening at the national level,” she said. “While Kansas is expanding access to care, federal leaders are trying to dismantle that progress.”