SAMHSA Awards $51 Million in Project LAUNCH Grants to Promote the Health and Wellbeing of Children in Communities across America

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Date: 9/24/2009
Media Contact: SAMHSA Press
Telephone: 240-276-2130

SAMHSA Awards $51 Million in Project LAUNCH Grants to Promote the Health and Wellbeing of Children in Communities across America

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) today announced that it will award $51 million in Project LAUNCH (Linking Actions for Unmet Needs in Children’s Health) grants to state and tribal youth programs over the next five years. Project LAUNCH is a grant program for promoting the wellness of young children from birth to 8 years of age by addressing the physical, emotional, social, cognitive and behavioral aspects of their development.

Project LAUNCH grantees will use a range of evidence-based public health strategies to achieve their goals. Participating states and tribes will work to improve coordination among child-serving systems, build infrastructure, and improve methods for providing services. The majority of the funds will be passed from the state and tribal level to identified localities where they will support the enhancement and integration of services.

These grants will allow local programs to provide such enhanced services as mental health consultation for childcare and early education providers, integration of behavioral health and primary care, developmental assessments in a range of settings, family strengthening programs, parenting skills training, home visitation and other supportive programs.

“Project LAUNCH grants enhance and energize essential child-serving systems in communities throughout the country,” said SAMHSA Acting Administrator Eric Broderick, D.D.S., M.P.H. “It is a very promising approach to promoting healthy child development in a way that offers new hope to young people, families and communities.”
In order to model the cooperation it requires from grantees, SAMHSA is working in partnership with other agencies in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to guide the development of the initiative and integrate Project LAUNCH with other federal programs. This partnership includes HHS’s Administration for Children and Families, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Health Resources and Services Administration.

The programs selected for LAUNCH grants will receive up to $850,000 each year, over the course of the next five years. The actual award amounts may vary, depending on the availability of funds and the progress achieved by the awardees. The program is administered by SAMHSA’s Center for Mental Health Services.

The following is a list of the grant awardees:

Oregon Department of Human Services
North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services
Massachusetts Department of Public Health
Illinois Department of Human Services
California Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health Program
Iowa Department of Public Health
Wisconsin Department of Health Services
Michigan Department of Community Health
District of Columbia Department of Health
State of Ohio Department of Health
New York State Council on Children and Families
Kansas Department of Health and Environment

For additional information about SAMHSA grants go to http://www.samhsa.gov/grants/

SAMHSA is a public health agency within the Department of Health and Human Services. The agency is responsible for improving the accountability, capacity and effectiveness of the nation's substance abuse prevention, addictions treatment, and mental health services delivery system.

Page Last Updated: 9/24/2009