The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Mental Health Services is accepting applications for fiscal year (FY) 2016 Planning Grants for Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics (Short Title:  CCBHCs Planning Grants).   The purpose of this program is to support states to certify clinics as certified community behavioral health clinics (CCBHCs), establish prospective payment systems for Medicaid reimbursable services, and prepare an application to participate in a two year demonstration program. Populations to be served are adults with serious mental illness, children with serious emotional disturbance, and those with long term and serious substance use disorders, as well as others with mental illness and substance use disorders.

On April 1, 2014, the Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014 (H.R. 4302) was enacted.  The law included “Demonstration Programs to Improve Community Mental Health Services at Section 223 of the Act.  The program requires:  (1) the establishment and publication of criteria for clinics to be certified by a state as a certified community behavioral health clinic (CCBHC) to participate in a demonstration program; (2) the issuance of guidance on the development of a Prospective Payment System (PPS) for testing during the demonstration program; and (3) the awarding of planning grants for the purpose of developing proposals to participate in a time-limited demonstration program.  The overall goal is to evaluate demonstration programs in up to eight states that will establish CCBHCs according to specified criteria that will make them eligible for enhanced Medicaid funding through the PPS.

SAMHSA is working collaboratively with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid & Services (CMS) and the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) to implement Section 223.  SAMHSA developed the certification criteria found in the RFA in Appendix II - Criteria for the Demonstration Program to Improve Community Mental Health Centers and to Establish Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics.  CMS prepared guidance to states to establish a prospective payment system, found in the RFA in Appendix III - Section 223 Demonstration Programs to Improve Community Mental Health Services Prospective Payment System (PPS) Guidance.  ASPE will direct the national evaluation of the demonstration program. 

The awarding of CCBHCs Planning Grants is the first phase of a two-phase process.  Phase I provides funds for one year to states to certify community behavioral health clinics, establish a PPS for Medicaid reimbursable behavioral health services provided by the certified clinics, and prepare an application to participate in a two-year demonstration program.  CCBHC Planning Grantees must use the criteria found in Appendix II of the RFA to certify clinics in their states and follow the guidance found in Appendix III of the RFA to establish PPS. 

Up to eight states that participated in the CCBHC Planning Grants will be selected to participate in Phase II, the demonstration program. The eight selected states will bill Medicaid under an established PPS approved by CMS for behavioral health services provided to individuals eligible for medical assistance under the state Medicaid program.

Planning Grants for CCBHCs are authorized under the Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014, Section 223(c)(1). 

This announcement addresses Healthy People 2020 Mental Health and Mental Disorders Topic Area HP 2020-MHMD and Substance Abuse Topic Area HP 2020-SA and is in support of SAMHSA’s Recovery Support Strategic Initiative.