WASHINGTON — A federal judge has temporarily blocked the Trump administration from cutting billions of dollars in COVID-era public health funds, including money used in Kentucky to help people in recovery from addiction. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said the spending is no longer necessary and therefore wasteful because the pandemic is over.  

What You Need To Know

  • A federal judge temporarily blocked the Trump administration from cutting billions of dollars in COVID-era public health funds

  • The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said the spending is no longer necessary and therefore wasteful because the pandemic is over

  • Young People in Recovery (YPR) hosts support group meetings, community clean-ups, free social events and distributes supplies like the overdose-reversing drug naloxone

  • Before the judge’s ruling, YPR’s Kentucky program director said he learned six chapters in Kentucky were in danger of losing an estimated $60,000 provided under the American Rescue Plan Act 

Billy O’Bryan of Louisville has been in recovery from alcohol addiction for nine years, and he credits the services offered by Young People in Recovery (YPR) with helping him stay there.

He now leads the nonprofit’s Kentucky program.

YPR hosts support group meetings, community clean-ups, free social events and distributes supplies like the overdose-reversing drug naloxone.

“The services that we provide are a safe place for people to go and keep them connected to the recovery community and really invested in their future,” O’Bryan said. “Substance use disorder is the only disease or medical condition that I can think of where we’ve got zero follow-up. We send people to treatment, and then we send them back out into the world and say, ‘Good luck.’”

O’Bryan has been scrambling to cover costs after learning the Trump administration was pulling funds for six YPR chapters in Kentucky, an estimated $60,000, provided under the American Rescue Plan Act, he said.

Congress passed that law in 2021 at the request or then President Joe Biden to help state and local governments respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to a letter from Kentucky’s Cabinet for Health and Family Services, a notification from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services “stated that the end of the pandemic provides cause to terminate COVID-related grants.”

“From January 1st, 2024 to December 31st last year, those six chapters that lost our funding, did close to 500 events and had almost 15,000 participants,” O’Bryan said.

Gov. Andy Beshear, D-Ky., said the clawbacks are unlawful.

“Those dollars have been appropriated by a law that Congress passed, and a president or an executive can’t say we’re just not going to do it,” Beshear said on March 27.

Beshear joined 22 other states headed by Democrats in a federal lawsuit arguing Congress set aside funds for public health that were not tied to the length of the COVID-19 emergency.

After Spectrum News spoke with O’Bryan, Judge Mary McElroy from the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island agreed to temporarily block the funding cuts.

“Without the necessary funding, the States face a significant threat to public health, including the spread of infectious diseases, substance abuse prevention efforts, and access to mental health treatment,” she said in a court filing.

In a statement, Kendra Steele, executive director of the office of public affairs for the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services, told Spectrum News, “We are pleased that a Temporary Restraining Order, requested by Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear along with 22 other states, has been issued to prevent Congressionally appropriated federal grants from being withheld. Any cuts to federal funding would have an impact on Kentuckians.”

Despite the judge’s decision, O’Bryan said his organization has paused spending the funds in question, unsure if they will get reimbursed.  

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