News Release

HHS Awards $4 Million for Substance Abuse Prevention Grants for Young Workers

Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson today announced 13 grants totaling $4 million over two years to provide substance abuse prevention programs for youth ages 16-24 who are transitioning into the workplace.

The awards are $150,000 or less per year for up to 2 years to adopt evidence-based interventions for youthful employees and their families.  These programs will direct specific attention to gender, ethnic, cultural, linguistic and occupational variations in the workplace, targeting younger workers.  Recipients of the awards will enhance existing prevention programs and collect survey data to determine their effectiveness.

These are Phase I awards.  Some grantees will qualify for Phase II awards that will continue for three more years at $500,000 per year for a total of $2 million per year.  These Phase II grantees will be competitively selected from those Phase I grantees who have successfully enhanced their workplace-based substance abuse programs and provided sufficient data from these workplaces to determine effectiveness.

“President Bush is urging us to emphasize health prevention in schools and workplaces,” Secretary Thompson said.  “Prevention programs like this one can dramatically reduce the number of people caught in the web of addiction and will help more Americans live better lives.”

“Drug prevention efforts are the most cost-effective approach to the drug problem,” SAMHSA Administrator Charles Curie said.  “These programs help spare society the future costs that treatment, rehabilitation, lost productivity, and other social problems related to drugs incur.”

Grantees include:

Arizona

Chicano por la Causa, Tucson -$149,964 in the first year to develop, refine, and evaluate a substance abuse early prevention and intervention curriculum for Hispanic youth. The curriculum is based on a model program with the targeted population to include: students in high school transition-to-work programs; and young adults 18-24 who are in the workplace, including those who are in college with part time employment.  The program expects to receive $150,000 the second year.

Pima Prevention Partnership, Tucson - $150,000 in the first year to service a community with a high rate of illicit substance abuse.  This trend places youth ages 16-24 at great risk for long-term consequences during employment that impact their potential lifetime earnings.  This program is designed to measurably increase youth’s employability and reduce their vulnerability to substance use.  The program expects to receive $150,000 the second year.

Colorado

Peer Assistance Services, Inc., Denver - $149,990 in the first year to implement a model program from SAMHSA’s National Registry of Effective Programs and Practices.  This program, “Team Awareness” will be enhanced for youth ages 16-24.  These youth are employed in three participating communities that represent a diverse population living in both urban and rural settings who are at significant risk for alcohol and other drug use, both on and off the job. The program expects to receive $150,000 the second year.

Idaho

Boise State University, Boise, ID - $150,000 in the first year to expand its longstanding partnership with the Boise State University’s Small Business Development Center.  The program will include the Center for Healthy Policy to provide services to employed youth ages 16-24.  The program expects to receive $150,000 the second year.

Maryland

Strategic Community Services, Inc., Glenarden - $150,000 in the first year to develop a health-oriented substance abuse prevention program to reduce drug use and abuse among youthful African-American employees ages 16-24 in the private-security workplace.  In year two, the program expects to receive $150,000.

Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation, Calverton - $150,000 in the first year to partner with a large nationwide transportation corporation and its unions to implement a randomized, controlled trial designed to reduce substance abuse among 1,500 permanent employees ages 18-24.  The program will work with Operation RedBlock, a union-operated program that is company-funded, and peer-supported, to help keep the workplace substance-free and steer employees with substance abuse problems to treatment.  In year two, the program expects to receive $150,000.

North Carolina

ValueOptions, Research Triangle Park - $149,987 in the first year to partner with six corporate customers to pilot a prototype Employee Assistance Program (EAP) outreach service to young employees (ages 16-24) and their families.  This program will match cultural, demographic and attitude preferences to achieve outreach services to young workers.  In year two, the program expects to receive $150,000.

New York

National Health Promotion Associates, Inc., White Plains - $149,981 in the first year to enhance, implement, and evaluate the “Life Skills” program, from SAMHSA’s National Registry of Effective Programs and Practices, in a workplace setting for young employees ages 16-24.  Approximately 30 sites will be served in their selected workplace, a large supermarket chain in Upstate New York.  This program will allow employees to learn about developing and maintaining a positive self-image; risk-taking associated with substance abuse; decision-making for risk reduction; and causes and effects of substance abuse.  In year two, the program expects to receive $150,000. 

Oregon

RMC Research Corporation, Portland - $149,873 in the first year to partner with Worksystems, Inc., the National Electrical Contractors Association, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and Organizational Wellness and Learning Systems, in the enhancement and implementation of the SAMHSA National Registry of Effective Programs and Practices model Team Awareness program for a population of young employees ages 18-24.  The target population is electrician apprentices and foremen.  In year two, the program expects to receive $150,000.

Texas

Houston Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, Houston - $150,000 in the first year to enhance a workplace substance abuse prevention program for younger employees ages 16-24.  The program will work with evaluators to adapt, design and pilot test its Healthy Workers project for a number of youthful employees in large and medium sized corporations based in Texas.  The program expects to receive $150,000 the second year.

Tarrant Council on Alcoholism, Forth Worth - $150,000 in the first year to provide substance abuse prevention and early intervention services to youthful employees ages 16-24 and their families.  They will enhance and adopt the Team Awareness program along with a second SAMHSA National Registry of Effective Programs and Practices program, Healthy Workplaces, in both small, medium and large businesses.  The program expects to receive $150,000 in year two.

Organizational Wellness and Learning Systems, Forth Worth - $150,000 in the first year to enhance and pilot test two health promotion programs for restaurant workers ages 18-24.   The programs will be sensitive to employee needs and will use input from the restaurant employees in the program to help shape the actual content. 

Virginia 

ISA Associates, Inc., Alexandria - $149,976 in the first year to partner with an insurance company to develop and test the “Healthy Work-Life for Youth” program on a sample of young employees ages 18-24.  The program will be enhanced from a SAMHSA National Registry of Effective Programs and Practices model program, Healthy Workplaces. This program will assist young employees in successfully making the transition from school to work and reducing the high-risk behaviors often associated with this age group.  The program expects to receive $150,000 the second year. 

SAMHSA, a public health agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is the lead federal agency for improving the quality and availability of substance abuse prevention, addiction treatment and mental health services in the United States.

This page was last updated on 09 November, 2004
SAMHSA is An Agency of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services