Tending an Ailing Health System States are using American Rescue Plan funds to address their unique health needs.

• Author: Hughes, Kelly
• Position: THE MONEY ISSUE

Ahistoric amount of COVID-19 relief cash for states arrived in 2021 with the American Rescue Plan Act. States have until the end of December 2024 to dole out the funds, and many legislatures are busy allocating them to rebuild their economies and ease the pandemic's continuing effects.

States can use ARPA funds in several ways, and many are using funds for specific health-related expenditures, including for behavioral health, health care system supports and public health mitigation efforts.

The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged the overall capacity of health care systems to treat individuals and exposed significant deficiencies in public health systems across the country to address prevention on a larger scale. It's also exacerbated behavioral and other health issues across nearly every demographic of the U.S. population.

Behavioral Health

Nearly half of adults reported at least one adverse behavioral health condition brought on by pandemic-related stressors, according to a study cited by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Many states are prioritizing behavioral health--including mental health issues, substance use disorder treatment and prevention, and suicide prevention--in ARPA fund allocations.

For example, Colorado used ARPA funds to create a $550 million behavioral and mental health cash fund. The Legislature also appropriated money to various behavioral health-related programs, including addiction recovery services for people with mental health disorders.

Virginia appropriated more than $110 million to its behavioral health and developmental services department for bonuses for direct care staff, expansion of community-based crisis services, personal protective equipment and capital improvements at state facilities.

Health Care System Supports

The pandemic put some hospitals and health facilities under immense pressure and stretched others beyond their capacity. Several states are using ARPA funds to support health care facilities, safeguard health care services for high-need populations, and shore up the health care workforce.

For example, Illinois allocated over $200 million to the Department of Healthcare and Family Services for the Children's Hospital of Chicago, safety net hospitals, general hospitals and specialized mental health rehabilitation facilities. Zooming in on rural hospitals, Kansas established a rural hospital innovation grant program and rural hospital innovation grant fund.

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