Alaska was selected for the federal CCBHC Medicaid Demonstration

Alaska's Division of Behavioral Health has been selected to participate in the federal Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic Medicaid Demonstration, opening two SAMHSA grant opportunities for behavioral health providers across the state. Both grants accept applications through August 17, 2026.

The CCBHC model is a federally defined standard. Participating clinics must deliver a comprehensive set of services — crisis response, outpatient mental health and substance use treatment, primary care screening, peer support, care coordination — regardless of a patient's ability to pay, with enhanced federal Medicaid reimbursement to support the broader scope. The framework originated with the 2014 Excellence in Mental Health Act and was expanded under the 2022 Bipartisan Safer Communities Act.

For Alaska, demonstration participation is substantive. The state has consistently ranked among the highest in the country for suicide rates and faces persistent rural behavioral health access gaps, workforce shortages, and limited specialized care outside Anchorage and Fairbanks. The CCBHC framework, at scale, would change how integrated behavioral health is delivered and reimbursed across the state.

The two grants are the CCBHC Planning, Development, and Implementation Grant (SM-26-014) and the CCBHC Improvement and Advancement Grant (SM-26-015). Both are open to providers building capacity or preparing to meet Alaska's CCBHC certification requirements. Providers seeking readiness support can contact CCBHC Project Director Anastasia Larion at [email protected].