Guam to lose $6 million in federal grants for mental health programs

By Pacific Island Times News Staff

Guam stands to lose more than $6 million in federal funds allocated for the Guam Behavioral Health and Wellness Center due to the Trump administration's drastic funding cuts for substance abuse and mental health programs.

The funding cut, which will affect 20 employees at Guam's mental health agency, will force the local government to draw on its treasury to continue providing services to its clients, the governor's office said.

The governor's office anticipates that the fiscal fix will result in a shortfall of more than $1 million for GBHWC in the current fiscal year, as the FY 2026 budget law did not account for these cuts from the federal executive branch. 

“This is a devastating and heartless reduction in federal funding to help the most vulnerable in Guam,” Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero said.

“We are happy to provide this band-aid, but to truly heal this budgetary wound, we need our legislative partners on Guam and in Washington to pitch in," she added.

The governor urged Del. James Moylan, Guam's Republican representative to Congress, "and the proud ‘Friends of Trump’ in our legislature to get the message to their president in the White House of the impact of these cuts on Guam."

President Donald Trump's proposed budget includes the elimination and consolidation of grant programs under the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, resulting in a $1 billion slash in the agency's appropriation.

Carissa Pangelinan and James Cooper-Nurse, the agency's director and deputy director, respectively, are also assessing the impact on federally funded staff and the agency's ability to meet demand for services.

“This is both cruel and needless. This is a serious setback,” Lt Gov. Josh Tenorio said. “All told we’re facing a loss in the neighborhood of $6.6 million at a time when we’ve been making real progress in treating and preventing substance abuse, behavioral health and related issues.”

Westcare Pacific, an NGO that also delivers critical services in Guam, is losing $1 million in addition to the cuts affecting GBHWC, the local government agency bearing the brunt of these cuts, as well as its nonprofit vendors.

“We are already exploring the options we may have available to us to bridge both the immediate and long-term funding gap locally,” the governor said. “We must do everything we can to stabilize these critical services that save lives,” she added.

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