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Coastal Bend Wellness Foundation awarded federal grant for opioid addiction treatment

Coastal Bend Wellness Foundation awarded federal grant for opioid addiction treatment

Money Moves Corpus Christi, TX local

$750K from SAMHSA expands medication-assisted treatment across five South Texas counties

September 30th, 2026: Project ROAD work scheduled to begin

Overview

Updated 2 hours ago

A Corpus Christi community health center has $750,000 in new federal money to treat opioid addiction across five South Texas counties. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) recorded the award on September 18, with work starting September 30.

The grant funds Project ROAD, which will provide medications for opioid use disorder to 200 adults over five years. It comes eight months after the same organization nearly lost $1.5 million when federal grants were abruptly canceled then restored.

Why it matters

200 adults across five South Texas counties gain access to opioid addiction medication, if the funding holds after January's abrupt cancellation scare.

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Key Indicators

$750K
Award amount
Federal grant from SAMHSA for opioid treatment
200
Patients to be served
Unduplicated patients over five years
5
Counties covered
Nueces, San Patricio, Jim Wells, Kleberg, Aransas

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People Involved

Organizations Involved

Timeline

January 2026 September 2026

4 events Latest: September 30th, 2026 · 1 week ago
Tap a bar to jump to that date
  1. Project ROAD work scheduled to begin

    Latest Milestone

    Award record lists September 30 as the start date for the five-year opioid treatment program.

  2. SAMHSA records $750K award to CBWF

    Funding

    Federal award record shows $750,000 obligated to Coastal Bend Wellness Foundation for Project ROAD, an opioid treatment program.

  3. CBWF notified of $1.5M funding termination

    Funding

    CEO Bill Hoelscher received notice at 10 p.m. that $1.5 million in federal funding would be terminated, affecting 12 staff and three programs.

  4. Funding restored after grants canceled

    Funding

    SAMHSA reinstated funding after roughly 2,000 substance abuse and mental health grants were abruptly canceled then restored.

Scenarios

1

Grant proceeds, 200 patients treated

Likely Resolves by Q3 2031

Discussed by: SAMHSA grant records and CBWF program reports

The grant runs its full five-year term. CBWF provides medications for opioid use disorder to 200 adults across the five-county region, meeting the patient targets outlined in the award record.

2

Funding terminated again

Possible Resolves by Q3 2027

Discussed by: KRIS 6 News reporting on January funding scare

Given the January 2026 cancellation and restoration, the new grant could face similar disruption. If SAMHSA or the administration terminates the award, CBWF would lose the funding and the program would be disrupted.

3

Program expands beyond initial scope

Unlikely Resolves by Q3 2031

Discussed by: CBWF leadership comments about funding diversification

If the program succeeds and federal funding remains stable, CBWF could seek additional funding to expand Project ROAD beyond 200 patients or add services. This would require new grant awards from SAMHSA or other sources.

Historical Context

2 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

March 2013

2013 federal sequester

Automatic budget cuts of $85 billion hit federal programs, including community health centers, which lost funding and reduced services. The sequester was triggered by the Budget Control Act of 2011 when Congress failed to reach a deficit reduction deal.

Then

Community health centers cut staff and reduced services for uninsured patients.

Now

Created lasting funding uncertainty for safety-net providers that depend on federal grants.

Why this matters now

Shows how federal budget decisions can disrupt community health services, similar to the abrupt cancellation CBWF experienced in January 2026.

December 2018 - January 2019

2018-2019 government shutdown

The longest U.S. government shutdown in history lasted 35 days, furloughing federal workers and delaying grant processing and program oversight across health agencies.

Then

Federal workers furloughed, grant processing delayed, and health programs faced uncertainty.

Now

Highlighted the vulnerability of programs dependent on annual appropriations and political negotiations.

Why this matters now

Demonstrates the fragility of federal funding for health programs, a risk CBWF now faces with its new grant.

Sources

(5)