(1) Subject to the availability of amounts appropriated for this specific purpose, the authority shall establish a grant program to:

(a) Provide treatment services for low-income individuals with substance use disorder who are not eligible for medical assistance programs under chapter 74.09 RCW, with priority for the use of the funds for very low-income individuals; and

(b) Provide treatment services that are not eligible for federal matching funds to individuals who are enrolled in medical assistance programs under chapter 74.09 RCW.

(2) In establishing the grant program, the authority shall consult with the substance use recovery services advisory committee established in RCW 71.24.546, behavioral health administrative services organizations, managed care organizations, and regional behavioral health providers to adopt regional standards that are consistent with the substance use recovery services plan developed under RCW 71.24.546 to provide sufficient access for youth and adults to meet each region's needs for:

(a) Opioid use disorder treatment programs;

(b) Low-barrier buprenorphine clinics;

(c) Outpatient substance use disorder treatment;

(d) Withdrawal management services, including both subacute and medically managed withdrawal management;

(e) Secure withdrawal management and stabilization services;

(f) Inpatient substance use disorder treatment services;

(g) Inpatient co-occurring disorder treatment services; and

(h) Behavioral health crisis walk-in and drop-off services.

(3) Funds in the grant program must be used to reimburse providers for the provision of services to individuals identified in subsection (1) of this section. The authority may use the funds to support evidence-based practices and promising practices that are not reimbursed by medical assistance or private insurance, including contingency management. In addition, funds may be used to provide assistance to organizations to establish or expand services as reasonably necessary and feasible to increase the availability of services to achieve the regional access standards developed under subsection (2) of this section, including such items as training and recruitment of personnel, reasonable modifications to existing facilities to accommodate additional clients, start-up funding, and similar forms of assistance. Funds may not be used to support the ongoing operational costs of a provider or organization, except in relation to payments for specific service encounters with an individual identified in subsection (1) of this section or for noninsurance reimbursable services.

(4) The authority must establish regional access standards under subsection (2) of this section, subject to the availability of amounts appropriated for this specific purpose, by January 1, 2023, and begin distributing grant funds by March 1, 2023.

Effective date—2021 c 311 ss 1-11 and 13-21: See note following RCW 71.24.115.