El Paso mental health and addiction service organizations received alarming termination notices for federal grants, only to have them rescinded two days later. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration awarded more than $8 million to the University of Texas at El Paso and five local organizations: Emergence Health Network, Aliviane, the El Paso Child Guidance Center, the El Paso Recovery Alliance, and Big Brothers Big Sisters of El Paso. SAMHSA notified the organizations on January 13 that it could suspend programs if they no longer “effectuated” the agency’s priorities, but the letters did not explain why the programs did not align with federal goals. On January 15, SAMHSA issued a brief email stating, “Please disregard the prior termination notice and continue program activities as outlined in your award agreement,” though some organizations received conflicting messages about grant endings.
Programs Affected
Aliviane and Emergence Health Network are among the largest grant recipients. Aliviane’s SAMHSA-funded programs support recovery for substance use disorder in specialty courts such as the DWI Drug Court, people experiencing homelessness, adolescents, and women who are pregnant and postpartum. Emergence Health Network’s grant-funded programs include on-campus mental health clinicians in partnership with El Paso County public school districts and training for first responders on naloxone use. The El Paso Recovery Alliance operates a drop-in center for opioid users where they can learn about medication-assisted treatment. The El Paso Child Guidance Center is set to receive $1.8 million between now and 2028 to provide trauma and grief-focused therapy treatment to children, teenagers, and their families. Big Brothers Big Sisters of El Paso received $200,000 this fiscal year to provide mental health first aid training to schools, businesses, and community organizations.
Impact of Near-Loss
The sudden termination threatened to disrupt treatment for vulnerable populations. According to Juan Perez of the Recovery Alliance, terminating medication-assisted treatment without warning could cause clients to experience withdrawals, get sick, and potentially die. For smaller organizations, losing funding could have threatened their existence. The El Paso Child Guidance Center noted that early identification and treatment of trauma in children is critical to prevent escalation to psychiatric hospitalization.
This article is an AI-assisted summary. All facts and figures are drawn from the original report: https://elpasomatters.org/2026/01/20/samhsa-grants-el-paso-addiction-recovery-mental-health-services/