FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: June 23 2025
Kaitlin Price, Office of the Governor
|Jon Ebelt, Department of Public Health and Human Services
Governor Gianforte, DPHHS Announce $2.5 Million Behavioral Health Investment in Tribes, Rural Counties
Communities will pilot innovative programs customized to meet local needs
HELENA, Mont. – Governor Greg Gianforte today announced $2.5 million in grants have been awarded to 10 recipients across the state to support rural counties and tribes as they design and implement targeted, locally-developed initiatives to support behavioral health (BH) needs within their communities.
The Local Innovations in Behavioral Health Pilot Grant Program, announced by Gov. Gianforte in September 2024, provides up to $250,000 over the next two years to the Chippewa Cree Tribe and the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians, and Teton, Dawson, Pondera, Beaverhead, Jefferson, Richland, Garfield, and Fallon counties.
“To support behavioral health systems and improve the overall wellness of rural Montanans, it's essential that we come alongside local communities as they spearhead targeted initiatives that address their specific needs,” Governor Gianforte said. “These funds will supply rural counties and tribes with the support they need to create and implement programs suited for them.”
Recommended by the Behavioral Health System for Future Generations (BHSFG) Commission, the investment represents the next allocation of $300 million in funding secured by the governor to reform and improve Montana’s BH and developmental disabilities (DD) services systems. This is one of the 11 Near-Term Initiatives currently being implemented in various stages.
“Through this investment, we are encouraging local creativity and teamwork among rural and tribal communities with unique needs, while also allowing for their existing behavioral health initiatives to achieve their full potential,” Department of Public Health and Human Services Director Charlie Brereton said.
For this program, Tribes and counties applied to one of two tracks within the grant application.
One track aims to facilitate local collaboration between BH and social service providers. The Montana Public Health Institute (MTPHI) will support these groups as they develop new programs and enhance the effectiveness of existing ones. Awardees on this track will work with MTPHI to implement a BH toolkit. The toolkit will help communities assess the local prevalence and impact of BH issues, catalog the available local resources, identify and implement new, non-duplicative programs, and monitor and evaluate the efficacy of new interventions.
A second track option focuses on leveraging local community health workers (CHWs) to act as liaisons between community members and the extensive network of BH service providers available through Catalyst for Change’s referral system. Catalyst for Change provides clinical supervision and training to CHWs, helping them effectively respond to BH crises and connect community members to needed services and resources.
To further reform and improve Montana’s BH and DD service systems beyond one-time-only investments, the 2025 Legislature also authorized $74.5 million n critical, ongoing state and federal funding for 10 select initiatives included in the governor’s budget. These initiatives are detailed in the Commission’s 2024 final report.
More information about the Commission and its work may be found on the BHSFG website.