KFA Grant Program

The opioid epidemic continues to take an enormous toll both nationwide and in Kansas, with the number of drug overdose deaths since 1999 nationally surging past 1 million and the numbers of deaths in the state steadily rising in recent years.

Kansas has worked to address the opioid problem by reaching multiple legal settlements with and bringing accountability to major pharmaceutical companies, distributors and related firms that fueled the addiction crisis. In 2021, the Kansas Legislature passed the Kansas Fights Addiction Act, authorizing the state to use money recovered by the Attorney General’s Office through the settlements to tackle substance abuse and help ensure addiction services are provided throughout the state.

The Kansas opioid settlements are split into two funds – 75% going to the KFA fund and 25% to the Municipalities Fight Addiction Fund (MFAF), with $200,000 dedicated annually to K-TRACS, the Kansas prescription drug monitoring program. The KFA Act directs all recovery to opioid and SUD abatement. The MFAF 25% is distributed evenly across the 205 participating counties and municipalities. Per the KFA Act, the 75% of settlement dollars allocated to KFA is administered through a grant review board.

The enacting legislation authorized the attorney general to create the 11-member Kansas Fights Addiction Act Grant Review Board. The board oversees the KFA grant program, which will provide funding opportunities for eligible state agencies, local and county governments and nonprofit organizations that provide services in Kansas for the purpose of preventing, reducing, treating, or otherwise abating or remediating substance abuse or addiction.

Sunflower Foundation serves as the administrator for the KFA grant program and provides other support services to the KFA board. The program is providing two rounds of funding in 2023. The first round prioritizes strategies related to treatment, recovery, reducing harm associated with substance abuse, and linking people to support services and care. The second round prioritizes prevention, providers and health systems, and public safety and first responders.

Latest KFA News

KU Center for Public Partnerships & Research to lead work on Kansas Fights Addiction Needs Assessment

Sunflower Foundation has selected the University of Kansas Center for Public Partnerships and Research (CPPR) to conduct a year-long, comprehensive statewide needs assessment of substance use disorder (SUD) systems and related work in Kansas that will be used to guide the future, long-term investment strategies of the Kansas Fights Addiction Grant Review Board.

The board oversees the KFA Grant Program, which provides funding to eligible state agencies, governmental entities and nonprofit organizations that deliver services in Kansas aimed at preventing, reducing, and treating substance abuse or addiction. In 2023, the KFA board awarded more than $10 million for projects across the state using money recovered by the Kansas Attorney General’s Office through legal settlements with pharmaceutical companies, distributors and related firms that have fueled the addiction crisis.

Sunflower Foundation, as administrator for the grant program, has been tasked with coordinating completion of the needs assessment.

One of the founding centers of the Achievement and Assessment Institute at KU, CPPR partners with agencies and organizations to improve the lives of children, youth and families. Through this partnership with the foundation, CPPR is tasked with conducting a needs assessment that will provide an in-depth view of the state’s SUD system across the lifespan and including all sectors, from early childhood and prevention through treatment and long-term recovery.

Through the needs assessment, the KFA board seeks to gain a better understanding of SUD system needs and identify where innovation is both necessary and possible to further reduce substance abuse and addiction, save lives, and improve systems of care.

“We are honored and humbled to be selected by Sunflower Foundation to conduct a comprehensive needs assessment in support of the Kansas Fights Addiction Grant Review Board and its long-term investments in prevention, harm reduction, treatment, and other strategies,” said CPPR Executive Director Jackie Counts. “Having seen the glaring signs of the opioid crisis through work helping children, youth, and families overcome systemic challenges, we are eager to partner with Sunflower Foundation to delve deeper into the devastating legacy and evolving fallout of the opioid epidemic.”

While previous system assessments have provided a solid foundation of data and helped jump-start the KFA grant program, a more complete, cross-systems analysis is necessary. To that end, CPPR will be looking to engage stakeholders and the public at the community level in search of new, innovative strategies that are succeeding in reducing SUDs and improving systems of care.

“Looking across the lifespan at all sectors and systems is essential to provide a roadmap for the KFA board and our state as they work to create a more comprehensive, innovative and multi-pronged strategy for identifying transformative solutions to the substance use disorder crisis in Kansas,” said Billie Hall, president and CEO of Sunflower Foundation. “Sunflower Foundation is eager to provide the results of this needs assessment to the KFA board as it seeks to gain a more thorough understanding of the way connections across systems influence substance use disorders.”

The foundation welcomes CPPR’s extensive experience in empowering communities to identify and create systemic change and believes it aligns well with the objectives set out for the KFA Needs Assessment.

“At CPPR, we know that those closest to the problems are best positioned to generate solutions. We believe it is our job to listen to what communities want and need, then equip them with the best research and supports available to generate solutions and deliver services,” Counts said. “We are excited for the work ahead and the opportunity to help communities envision and realize a better tomorrow.”

Sunflower Foundation and CPPR anticipate work on the KFA Needs Assessment will take at least 12 months to complete.

To maximize its effectiveness, the needs assessment will require intensive and broad engagement and input from Kansans and subject matter experts across the state and all disciplines. Anyone interested in providing input as part of the assessment process, or who would like to receive updates regarding the assessment and its results, can take our KFA Needs Assessment Survey.

KFA Board awards more than $4 million for prevention

After giving more than $6 million in grants in September aimed at supporting substance abuse and addiction treatment services across the state, the Kansas Fights Addiction Grant Review Board has awarded a second round of funding, this time providing more than $4 million in support of prevention services.

The latest KFA grants, which focus on prevention, providers and health systems, and public safety, were awarded to 24 projects. Funding through the grant program comes from money recovered by the Kansas Attorney General’s Office through opioid legal settlements.

The quality and quantity of applications for the prevention grants prompted the KFA board to double the amount of funding, originally expected not to exceed $2 million, to more than $4 million. That allowed the board to fund 24 projects instead of the originally anticipated 11.

The Kansas Fights Addiction Act, enacted in 2021 by the Kansas Legislature, authorized the creation of the KFA board. Sunflower Foundation serves as the administrator for the KFA grant program. Through settlements with major pharmaceutical companies, distributors and related firms, Kansas has secured more than $340 million to be paid to the state over the next 18 years.

The KFA board approved prevention grants to the following organizations:

Citizens Foundation – $129,997

CKF Addiction Treatment – $200,000

Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas – $150,050

Crawford County Sheriff’s Office – $19,654

DCCCA, Inc. – $194,519

First Call Alcohol/Drug Prevention & Recovery – $170,059

Heartland Community Health Center – $200,000

Johnson County Mental Health Center – $200,000

Kansas Board of Pharmacy – $200,000

Kansas Bureau of Investigation – $110,000

Kansas Highway Patrol – $186,293

Konza Prairie Community Health Center, Inc. – $200,000

Leavenworth County Sheriff’s Office – $199,226

Mirror, Inc. – $132,814

Overland Park Police Department – $195,000

Pratt Health Foundation – $189,700

Prevention and Resiliency Services – $200,000

Prime Fit Youth Foundation – $198,983

Republic County Hospital – $177,943

Thrive Allen County – $197,093

University of Kansas Medical Center Research Institute – $199,929

University of Kansas Medical Center Research Institute – $199,458

Wichita State University – $119,038

Wilson County Health Department – $109,520

The 59 grants and more than $10 million awarded by the KFA Board in 2023 will be used to assist approximately 37,100 Kansans in support of substance abuse and addiction services in Kansas.

“This is unprecedented,” Chris Teters, Assistant Attorney General, said in a statement released by the Attorney General’s Office. “This is $10 million that didn’t exist in the opioid abatement space that is going to target emergency needs in areas that either really need additional assistance or may not have had access to resources previously.

“These awards will expand access to naloxone. We will be using this opportunity to make naloxone available to communities and organizations across the state at the lowest cost possible.”

Naloxone is a fast-acting medication used to reverse the effects of opioid overdose.

According to the Office of the Kansas Attorney General, estimates show that more than 107,000 people died from a drug overdose in the U.S. in 2021. Of those, 75% involved opioids. In 2019, Kansas reported 393 overdose deaths, compared to 477 in 2020 and 678 in 2021, the most recent year for which statistics are available.

Eligibility for the KFA grant program is limited to state agencies, local and county governments, and nonprofit organizations that provide services in Kansas for the purpose of preventing, reducing, treating, or otherwise abating or remediating substance abuse or addiction. Applicants also must release all legal claims arising from covered conduct against each defendant named in the opioid settlement agreements.

In addition to administering the KFA grant program, Sunflower Foundation also is supporting the development of a comprehensive statewide needs assessment of substance use disorder (SUD) systems and related work in Kansas. The foundation is currently in the process of reviewing vendors that have applied for the opportunity to lead the needs assessment work and anticipates announcing its choice on or before Nov. 1.

To learn more about the KFA grantees and their projects, check out the 2023 KFA grant project summaries. To see the estimated impact of all 59 2023 grant projects, see the KFA Estimated Impact Report.

KFA Board awards nearly $6M for treatment services

The Kansas Fights Addiction Grant Review Board has awarded a total of nearly $6 million for 35 projects across Kansas in support of substance abuse and addiction treatment services.

The Office of Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach announced the list of organizations that received funding through the KFA grant program’s first round of funding, which prioritized treatment, recovery, reducing harm associated with substance use, and linking people to support services and care. Funding through the grant program comes from money recovered by the Kansas Attorney General’s Office through opioid legal settlements.

The KFA board received so many quality treatment applications that its members moved to double the amount of funding, originally expected not to exceed $3 million, to more than $6 million. That allowed the board to fund 35 applications instead of the anticipated 17.

“These grants go to organizations working to abate the crisis across the state, working to help treat individuals with opioid and substance-use disorders, help develop communities of recovery, reduce the harm of the crisis, and ensure people seeking treatment are able to connect with providers offering care,” said Christopher Teters, assistant attorney general.

“We are proud to be part of this process as it aligns with our mission at the Sunflower Foundation – to serve as a catalyst for improving the health of all Kansans,” said Krista Machado, Sunflower Foundation’s KFA director. “As the grant administrator, we are excited to support these grantees as they combat the opioid crisis in our state.”

The KFA board approved grants to the following organizations:

The Mirror, Inc., $187,397

Church of the Resurrection, $199,946

Kansas Department of Corrections, $200,000

31st Judicial District Drug Court, $200,000

Preferred Family Healthcare, Inc., $199,293

DCCCA, $200,000

Friends of Recovery Association, $200,000

Lorraine’s House, $57,000

New Chance Inc., $197,980

The University of Kansas Health System, $200,000

Cornerstones of Care, $105,831

Heartland Community Health Center, $200,000

Crawford County MHC, $200,000

High Point Advocacy & Resource Center, Inc., $200,000

Hunter Health Clinic Inc., $199,171

The Mirror, Inc., $48,785

Riley County Community Corrections, $200,000

Unified Government Public Health Department, $200,000

High Plains MHC, $87,819

Valeo Behavioral Health Care, $200,000

Valley Hope Association, $182,577

Mental Health Association of South Central, $150,621

Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center, $200,000

The Center for Counseling & Consultation, $177,375

Community Health Center of Southeast KS, $200,000

Kanza Mental Health & Guidance Center, $200,000

Third Judicial District of Kansas, $200,000

DCCCA, $200,000

CKF Addiction Treatment, $200,000

Saint Francis Community & Residential Services, $200,000

Substance Abuse Center of Kansas, $200,000

Heartland RADAC, $30,000

The Cedar House Foundation, $25,000

Empower House Ministries, $200,000

New Beginnings Inc., $95,000

Applications for a second round of KFA funding, which is expected to make $2 million in grants available for prevention, providers and health systems, and public safety and first responders, are being reviewed. Funding notifications for prevention grants are anticipated on or before Oct. 2.

Grant Opportunities

Currently, there are no open funding opportunities. Check back here for updates about future funding.

The first two rounds of funding from the Kansas Fights Addiction Grant Review Board were awarded in Fall 2023. Priority areas were split into two separate RFP funding opportunities, one for treatment and another for prevention. The initial combined total amount available was $5 million, however the KFA Board received so many quality applications that members moved to double the amount available for both RFPs, resulting in over $10 million awarded.

The first RFP resulted in over $6 million awarded for 35 grants within the areas of treatment, recovery, harm reduction, and linkages to care. The second RFP resulted in 24 grant awards for over $4 million for the areas of prevention, providers and health systems, and public safety and first responders.

The anticipated funding period for these 12-month grants are October 2023 to September 2024 for the treatment grantees and November 2023 to October 2024 for the prevention grantees.

To learn more about the KFA grants awarded in 2023, read the KFA project summaries and to see the estimated impact of all projects funded based on information gathered within grantee applications and budgets, see the KFA Estimated Impact Reports.