Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan announced Jan. 19 that four Upper Peninsula community organizations will receive $490,000 in grant funding to help them address gaps in service for individuals and families facing substance use disorder (SUD) and to support the development and growth of recovery communities. Recovery communities offer a variety of services to support people recovering from SUD and their family members.
The MHA is a community partner in the project, along with the Upper Peninsula Health Plan and four members of the Michigan Opioid Partnership: Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan Foundation, the Michigan Health Endowment Fund and the Superior Health Foundation.
The organizations’ two-year grant programming begins in January 2022. Organizations receiving the funding include the Eastern Upper Peninsula Opioid Response Consortium, Great Lakes Recovery Centers Inc., the Western Upper Peninsula Health Department and Superior Housing Solutions.
The MHA Board of Trustees identified behavioral health as a critical priority for the association in its 2021-2022 Strategic Action Plan. The board established goals for behavioral healthcare that include setting guiding principles, overcoming obstacles and seeking new funding. The MHA’s partnership in this grantmaking project is one of several steps toward achieving those goals.
Coverage of the press release includes stories from WJMN-TV and WLUC-TV6. For more information on the grants, contact Ruthanne Sudderth at the MHA. Additional information on the association’s efforts to address behavioral health is available from Laura Appel at the MHA.