Mental Health in the Headlines: Week of February 9, 2009
Mental Health in the Headlines offers summaries of the latest news and views in the mental health field. Coverage of news items in this publication does not represent Mental Health America's support for or opposition to the stories summarized or the views they express.
*DID YOU KNOW?
People with serious mental illness, without other big risk factors, are no more violent than most people...more
*TODAY’S NEWS
Health Care To Be Central Focus of Budget Plan
Although the withdrawal of Senator Tom Daschle as HHS Secretary was seen as a blow to health reform efforts, there is at least one signal that plans for an overhaul remain in place. According to an administration source, health care will be a central focus of the Presidents’ first budget proposal. The budget is expected to be submitted to Congress in late February. (The Treatment [The New Republic’s health blog], 2/8/09)
SCHIP Expansion Signed Into Law, Includes Mental Health Parity
President Obama signed into law an expansion of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program that will extend coverage to 4 million more children across the country. “I refuse to accept that millions of our children fail to reach their full potential because we fail to meet their basic needs," the President said. The legislation also includes mental health parity coverage under the program. “America’s kids should be guaranteed comprehensive care whether they need dental care, mental health, medical or surgical treatment,” said Senator John F. Kerry. (Boston Globe, 2/4/09)
Experts Say Climate Change Impacts Mental Health
Health and disaster experts believe global warming could have a significant impact on mental health. Evidence already exist that extreme weather events, such as droughts, floods, cyclones, and hurricanes, can lead to emotional distress. That, in turn, triggers depression and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. After Hurricane Katrina, rates of severe mental illness doubled among those who lived in affected regions. "After a disaster, people can feel inadequate, like outside forces are taking control of their lives," said Joshua Miller, a professor at the Smith College School for Social Work. The impact of global warming on the natural environment on the quality of life could also adversely affect mental health. (Boston Globe, 2/9/09)
Government Report Finds Pattern of Abuse at Kings Hospital
A U.S. Department of Justice report has found a pattern of sexual and other violent assaults toward patients in the psychiatric unit of Kings County Hospital in Brooklyn, New York, where a woman died in June on the floor of the emergency waiting room while staff members ignored her. The report found the psychiatric service operated like a prison where patients were treated for suicidal behavior and were routinely subdued with physical restraints and drugs instead of individualized psychiatric treatment. The report was made public as the head of the New York City’s Health and Hospitals Corporation announced that “radical changes” had been made at the hospital. (The New York Times, 2/6/09)
Medicare Drug Plan 'Doughnut Hole' Could Impact Seniors' Health
American seniors who reach the no-coverage “doughnut hole” in the Medicare Part D drug plan are less likely to use prescription drugs than those with an employer-based plan, a new study finds. The finding raises concerns about health consequences and increased costs from hospitalizations and doctor visits resulting from this lack of drug coverage, say researchers at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health. The doughnut hole begins when a person’s annual individual drug expenditures reach a certain amount--$2,250 in 2006. A change in policy that would mandate the coverage of generic drugs in the doughnut hole through a modest increase in initial prescription co-payments could help protect seniors, the team suggested. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 2/3/09)
Experts urge overhaul of health privacy rules
A panel of experts has urged the federal government to take a new approach to protecting personal health data in research. A committee of the Institute of Medicine, which provides advice to U.S. policymakers, said current government rules do too little to protect the privacy of people's personal health information and also hinder the use of health data in medical research. The panel recommended that Congress should either start from scratch or thoroughly overall privacy rules. (Reuters, 2/4/09)
Army's January Suicide Rate Could Be Highest Monthly Total Ever
Seven Army soldiers committed suicide last month and 17 more suspicious deaths could be confirmed as suicides, which could bring the monthly total number of suicides to its highest level since the military began tracking such statistics in 1980. In January 2008, five soldiers committed suicide. The Army last month announced that the suicide rate among U.S. soldiers in 2008 rose to its highest level since 1980. The annual rate rose for the fourth year in a row. (The New York Times, 2/6/09)
Latest Research
Mental Illness Doesn’t Predict Violent Behavior: A new study challenges the perception that mental illness alone is a cause of violence. People with serious mental illness, without other big risk factors, are no more violent than most people, according to the study of more than 34,000 U.S. adults published in the Archives of General Psychiatry. Researchers say other factors, such as substance abuse and a history of violent acts, can drive up the danger when combined with mental illness. (Newsweek, 2/3/09)
Study links TV and depression: Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh and Harvard Medical School looked at the media habits of 4,142 healthy adolescents and calculated that each additional hour of TV watched per day boosted the odds of becoming depressed by 8%. The results don't prove that TV viewing itself causes depression, but that people with the predilection for later development of depression also happen to have a predilection for watching lots of TV. (Los Angeles Times, 2/3/09)
Mood disorders common in polycystic ovary syndrome: The prevalence of depression and anxiety among patients with polycystic ovary syndrome is high and warrants routine screening and aggressive treatment, investigators report in the journal Fertility and Sterility. The prevalence of depression increased to 40 percent. Fifteen percent had panic syndrome or other anxiety disorder, and 23 percent had binge-eating disorder. Fifty-seven percent (34) of the study subjects were affected by at least one mental health disorder. (Reuters, 2/6/09)
*Mental Health America MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS
Last year, Congress passed a mental-health parity law that requires commercial insurers to cover mental and physical ailments equally. The new SCHIP law ensures that the 10 million or so children who will now be eligible for CHIP will have the same level of access. "It's exactly the same principle," says Kirsten Beronio, senior director of government affairs for Mental Health America. "This will help tear down the barriers to get access to care, care that's really critical for the healthy development of a lot of kids." U.S. News & World Report, “New SCHIP Law Gives Kids Mental Health Coverage,” February 4, 2009
Students between the ages of 18 and 30 are more susceptible to the depression and stress of Seasonal Affective Disorder, according to Mental Health America’s most recent survey of SAD. The Mayo Clinic suggested that those suffering from a case of the winter blues could brighten their lives by brightening their rooms.
The University Daily Kansan, “Painted walls blend therapy, artistry,” February 4, 2009
Stay Up to Date With More News, Views and Tools
- View highlights of Mental Health America’s 2008 Annual Conference featuring the Inaugural Promotion and Prevention Summit
- Save the Date: Mental Health America's Centennial Conference - June 10-13, 2009, Washington, D.C.
- Mental Health America’s 2008 Media Awards honor excellence in reporting of mental health issues
- Survey reveals obstacles to health care for people who have schizophrenia
- New report reveals link between states’ depression status and access to treatment
- Donate to our Resource Center and help save lives
- Share your story on realLIVES
- Join Mental Health America’s Advocacy Network
- Check out previous issues of Mental Health in the Headlines
Mental Health in the Headlines is produced weekly by Mental Health America. Mental Health America's Mental Health in the Headlines staff: Steve Vetzner, senior director, Media Relation and Sarah Jones, communications coordinator.
To subscribe to Mental Health in the Headlines, visit http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/go/action/subscribe.
To find out more about the Mental Health America, including how to make a tax-deductible contribution to help support Mental Health in the Headlines and the association's other educational activities, visit http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/ or call 800-969-6MHA (6642).
For comments and suggestions, send an e-mail to Mental Health America at postmaster@mentalhealthamerica.net.
