About News Federal Opioid Grant Funding Favors Least Populous States, Not Those With the Greatest Need May 03, 2021 Erin Tor Federal Opioid Grant Funding Favors Least Populous States, Not Those With the Greatest Need In a new paper published in the journal Health Affairs, Batten’s Christopher J. Ruhm and co-author Bradley A. Katcher find that the federal government’s opioid grant funding structure favors the least populous states, which are not always the states with greatest need. Co-authors Bradley A. Katcher, a research assistant for the Federal Reserve and Batten School alum (MPP ’19), and Christopher J. Ruhm, a professor of economics and public policy at the Batten School.For more than three decades, the United States has suffered from an opioid epidemic, and new data from the CDC suggests that COVID-19 is exacerbating the crisis. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the federal government’s largest funding source dedicated to behavioral and mental health, has been providing states with funding to reduce and treat opioid misuse. But there’s reason to believe that the agency is failing to effectively target areas of the country where people are struggling most. Two researchers—Christopher J. Ruhm, a professor of economics and public policy at the Batten School, and Bradley Katcher, a research assistant for the Federal Reserve and Batten School alum (MPP ’19)—created a comprehensive database to analyze the distribution of SAMHSA grants. In a study recently published in Health Affairs, a leading public health journal, Rhum and Katcher found that the SAMHSA favored less populous states, such as Alaska, Hawaii, and parts of New England. Less generously funded areas included Rust Belt states and Appalachia. The authors found that to achieve equity between all states, SAMHSA would need to redistribute $1.5 billion—or one-sixth—of its grant money. Ruhm and Katcher note that while it’s logical to assume that some states require more funding than others, their findings suggest that certain areas are receiving more support for reasons that have nothing to do with their level of need. The authors recommend that future grant targeting include “rigorous efforts to capture true differences in the severity of opioid problems across states.” The paper may be viewed in the most recent edition of Health Affairs. Christopher J. Ruhm Christopher J. Ruhm is a professor of public policy and economics at the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy. Ruhm’s recent research has focused on the role of government policies in helping parents with young children balance the competing needs of work and family life, and on examining how various aspects of health are produced – including the growth and sources of drug poisoning deaths in the United States, the rise in obesity and the relationship between macroeconomic conditions and health. Read full bio Related Content Christopher J. Ruhm Estimated Prevalence of and Factors Associated With Clinically Significant Anxiety and Depression Among US Adults During the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic Research How much did clinically significant anxiety and depression increase among US adults during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic? In this survey study of more than 1.4 million respondents in the US Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System survey, responses to a screening question calibrated to a 4-item Patient Health Questionnaire score of 6 or greater suggested that aggregate prevalence of clinically significant anxiety and depression increased only modestly overall among US adults in 2020 compared with 2017 to 2019. The Opioid Crisis, Health, Healthcare, and Crime: A Review Of Quasi-Experimental Economic Studies Research This study reviews quasi-experimental studies that examine the relationship between opioids and health and healthcare, and crime outcomes in the U.S. Batten Showcase 2022: Family and Medical Leave Policies in the US: Where We Are and How We Got Here ft. Chris Ruhm News In this lecture, professor of public policy and economics at the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy, Chris Ruhm, discusses family medical leave policy in the United States. Ruhm looks at where we are now, how we got here and how to move forward. We May Not Have Been as Anxious, Depressed in Pandemic's First Year as Once Thought News Findings from the Batten School's Christopher Ruhm and colleagues at Harvard question the accuracy of the CDC’s Household Pulse survey on mental health. Stay Up To Date with the Latest Batten News and Events Subscribe
Christopher J. Ruhm Christopher J. Ruhm is a professor of public policy and economics at the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy. Ruhm’s recent research has focused on the role of government policies in helping parents with young children balance the competing needs of work and family life, and on examining how various aspects of health are produced – including the growth and sources of drug poisoning deaths in the United States, the rise in obesity and the relationship between macroeconomic conditions and health. Read full bio
Estimated Prevalence of and Factors Associated With Clinically Significant Anxiety and Depression Among US Adults During the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic Research How much did clinically significant anxiety and depression increase among US adults during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic? In this survey study of more than 1.4 million respondents in the US Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System survey, responses to a screening question calibrated to a 4-item Patient Health Questionnaire score of 6 or greater suggested that aggregate prevalence of clinically significant anxiety and depression increased only modestly overall among US adults in 2020 compared with 2017 to 2019.
The Opioid Crisis, Health, Healthcare, and Crime: A Review Of Quasi-Experimental Economic Studies Research This study reviews quasi-experimental studies that examine the relationship between opioids and health and healthcare, and crime outcomes in the U.S.
Batten Showcase 2022: Family and Medical Leave Policies in the US: Where We Are and How We Got Here ft. Chris Ruhm News In this lecture, professor of public policy and economics at the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy, Chris Ruhm, discusses family medical leave policy in the United States. Ruhm looks at where we are now, how we got here and how to move forward.
We May Not Have Been as Anxious, Depressed in Pandemic's First Year as Once Thought News Findings from the Batten School's Christopher Ruhm and colleagues at Harvard question the accuracy of the CDC’s Household Pulse survey on mental health.