Summary: In September 2010, 6 months following the spill, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) initiated a series of data collection efforts supported by funds from BP, under a memorandum of agreement and conducted independently by SAMSHA and CDC, intended to assess the behavioral health status of the coastal population affected by the oil spill. These efforts focused on the residents of the Gulf Coast Disaster Area (GCDA), which includes counties and parishes in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi, and reported on the prevalence of mental health and substance use disorders and chronic health conditions, as well as on the utilization of behavioral health services. Data collection efforts included an oversample of residents in the GCDA conducted as part of the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), sponsored by SAMHSA, and the Gulf States Population Survey (GSPS), a survey of residents in the GCDA sponsored by CDC. Previously collected data for the region enabled the comparison of the behavioral health status for this population before and after the oil spill. Project Dates: Sept 2010 – Jan 2013 Lead Agency: The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Focus Area(s): Health, Stress & Mental Health State(s): Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi Return to Human Impacts Research Database