A practical guide to grants for substance use treatment, recovery, and prevention organizations, including SAMHSA funding, state opioid response, and foundations.

2025–2026 STATUS UPDATE: HHS announced restructuring in March 2025 that consolidates SAMHSA, HRSA, OASH, ATSDR, and NIOSH into a new “Administration for a Healthy America (AHA)” as part of a ~25% HHS workforce reduction. Programs and contact pathways may have shifted. Verify at hhs.gov.

Substance use treatment, recovery, and prevention is one of the most heavily funded behavioral health areas in the United States. SAMHSA is the dominant federal funder, but state pass-through, foundation funding, and local government grants all reach this work.

TL;DR: Quick Answers

Who funds addiction recovery work? SAMHSA, state behavioral health agencies, HRSA for primary-care integration, DOJ for justice-involved work, foundations, opioid settlement funds.
Who can apply? Treatment providers, recovery community organizations, hospitals, FQHCs, schools, nonprofits, coalitions.
What gets funded? Treatment, recovery support, prevention, harm reduction, MAT, peer services, integrated care.
What’s the biggest opportunity? SAMHSA State Opioid Response funding (often via state pass-through) plus opioid settlement funds.

Federal Funding

SAMHSA. The largest federal funder for substance use work:

State Opioid Response (SOR) grants.
Tribal Opioid Response.
Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Block Grant (SABG) to states.
CCBHC Expansion Grants.
Strategic Prevention Framework Partnerships for Success.
Drug-Free Communities Support Program.

HRSA for primary-care integration of substance use treatment, especially at FQHCs.

DOJ for justice-involved substance use programs (drug courts, reentry).

CDC for overdose prevention surveillance and intervention.

State Pass-Through

Most SAMHSA funding flows through state behavioral health agencies, see pass-through grants. Your state’s Single State Agency for substance use is often the primary doorway.

Opioid Settlement Funds

Opioid settlement dollars from pharmaceutical companies are now flowing to states and localities, with various structures for re-granting to programs. These funds are substantial and growing.

Foundation Funders

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
Conrad N. Hilton Foundation.
The Pew Charitable Trusts.
Open Society Foundations.
Vital Strategies.
Health conversion foundations in your region.
Community foundations with behavioral health priorities.

What Gets Funded

Treatment programs (outpatient, residential, MAT/MOUD).
Recovery community organizations and peer services.
Prevention coalitions (especially DFC-style work).
Harm reduction (syringe services, naloxone, fentanyl test strips).
Co-occurring disorder treatment.
Integration with primary care.
Workforce and training programs.
Special populations (justice-involved, pregnant women, adolescents, tribal communities).

Tips for a Competitive Application

Use evidence-based practices. SAMHSA strongly favors evidence-based and promising practices.
Center lived experience. Peer leadership and recovery-oriented system frameworks are valued.
Address health equity explicitly, see equity language.
Plan for sustainability beyond grant cycles, see sustainability plan.
Coordinate with state agencies and existing systems.
Document data with NSDUH, treatment utilization, overdose data, local needs assessments.

How Grantboost Helps

Substance use funding spans SAMHSA, HRSA, DOJ, CDC, state agencies, foundations, and settlement funds. Grantboost continuously surfaces scored, mission-matched opportunities and drafts in your organization’s voice (see training AI on your past proposals).

Try Grantboost free and find the funding for your recovery work.

Grants for Addiction Recovery Programs: SAMHSA, Foundations, and More