President's FY'2010 Budget for Select Programs in Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA) -- May 2009

On May 7, 2009 President Obama formally released the details of a roughly $3.7 trillion budget plan for the fiscal year 2010, beginning October 1—what even some administration officials admit could be a moving target.

While non-defense discretionary spending would increase by nearly 12 percent, the President’s budget calls for savings of $17 billion by scrapping or reducing 121 ongoing programs, ranging from civics education to anthrax vaccine research. Most of the savings, $11.5 billion, would come from the discretionary spending controlled by the Appropriations committees, about half of which is in the Defense Department. About $3.6 billion would result from a plan to cut back the role of private lenders in the federal college student aid program.

Despite the proposed cuts, funding for two of the government’s largest agencies would change little. A $663.8 billion request for the Defense Department amounts to two percent more in inflation-adjusted dollars than the FY2009 appropriation for that department, compared to an average annual growth rate of four percent over the last eight years. *

The President is asking for $828 billion for the Department of Health and Human Services, including $78.3 billion in discretionary spending, about the same level of funding for FY 2009. President Obama primarily proposed to flat-fund budgets for agencies under the Department of Health and Human Services in fiscal 2010, as they continue to spend billions of dollars (i.e.., $22.4 billion) in extra money they received under the economic stimulus law passed in February.

(Excerpted from Analysis of the PRESIDENT’S FISCAL YEAR 2010 BUDGET PROPOSAL, prepared by Cavarocchi, Ruscio, Dennis Associates, LLC.)

The FY 2010 President’s Budget request for SAMHSA is $3,525.5 million, an increase of $59.0 million above the FY 2009 Omnibus level. Within this budget, there are a number of programs that are slated for increases: Children’s Mental Health Services Program (+$16.9 million), Projects for the Assistance in Transition from Homelessness (+$8.4 million), Substance Abuse Treatment Programs of Regional and National Significance (+$45.7 million), Program Management (+$1.8 million), and St. Elizabeth’s Hospital Building and Facilities (+$.023 million). It also includes a $1.6 million increase for civilian and Commissioned Corp pay increases. On the flip-side, there are a number of proposed program decreases in this FY’10 Budget proposal including: Mental Health Programs of Regional and National Significance (-$8.6 million), Substance Abuse Prevention Programs of Regional and National Significance (-$2.7 million) and Data Evaluation (-$2.5 million).

The budget proposes $7.2 billion for HRSA, a net decrease of $107 million below current funding, largely due to the elimination of $361 million earmarks included in the agency’s fiscal 2009 budget. For the most part, HRSA programs are held steady, with increases targeted on strengthening the health workforce, including the National Health Service Corps (+$122 million), training for diversity (+$14 million), geriatric programs (+$11 million), and primary care medicine and dentistry (+$8 million). The proposal includes level funding for Community Health Centers ($2.2 billion) and for the first time in its eight year history, the Graduate Psychology Education Program (GPE) is included in the President’s FY’10 Budget at the FY’09 level of $2 million (see related article).*

Although the President requested flat funding for the GPE Program at $2 million, it was included in the budget request for the first time. Education GRO staff is seeking an explicit authorization for GPE this Congress through the Graduate Psychology Education Act (S.811 and H.R. 2066), which was introduced in the Senate on April 2nd by Senator Daniel Inouye (D-HI) and in the House on April 23rd by Representatives Gene Green (D-TX) and Tim Murphy (R-PA). If passed, S. 811 and H.R. 2066 will fully authorize the program and give GPE its own line item and therefore facilitate gaining increased funding in the annual appropriations process.

The President proposed $23.9 million (+$10 million) for the Geriatric Training Programs of which we are seeking and except to gain inclusion for psychology graduate programs through Health Care Reform legislation.

Psychologists are eligible for the Minority Faculty Loan Repayment Program, and for which the President requested flat-funding at $1.3 million, and the Scholarships for Disadvantaged Students for which the President requested $52.8 million (+ $7 million).

The President proposed $123 million (+ $28 million) for recruitment and $46 million (+ $6 million) for field placements. In addition, the NHSC got almost $250 million for approximately 4,000 new clinicians, including psychologists from the stimulus funds for the next two years.

The President proposed flat funding at $2.2 billion; however, the health centers received $338 million from the stimulus funds for the next two years for almost 6,400 new positions.