Mental Health in the Headlines: Week of November 2, 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?
More than 65 percent of U.S. mothers with depression don't receive adequate treatment...more
*HEALTH REFORM UPDATE
House To Vote on Health Reform Plan, Senate
Democratic leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives unveiled their health reform overhaul and hope to bring it to vote late this week. It includes a government-run "public" insurance option and a new tax on the wealthiest Americans to pay for it. Senate Democratic leaders are also working on their version of a healthcare overhaul and waiting for cost estimates from the Congressional Budget Office. That plan also includes a government-run insurance option, but allows states to opt out of participating. The bill also omits a mandate that all employers offer insurance to workers or pay a penalty. (Reuters, 11/01/09)
17,000 Child Deaths Linked to Lack of Insurance
Nearly 17,000 deaths of hospitalized children might have been prevented by having insurance over a span of 18 years, a new study estimates. Researchers at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine analyzed 23 million pediatric inpatient hospital records from 37 states covering the years 1988 to 2005, comparing the risk of death of children with insurance to those without it. After taking into account factors such as age and hospital region, hospitalized uninsured children in the study were 60 percent more likely to die than those with insurance, the researchers write. The uninsured appeared to have an increased risk of dying regardless of their medical conditions. The findings do not count children who died without ever being hospitalized or after hospital discharge, which means the death toll of non-insured kids could well have been higher. (The New York Times, 10/30/09)
*TODAY’S NEWS
Defense Secretary Says Troops Fear Stigma
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said last week that many military personnel fear a stigma if they seek help for psychological injuries. He also criticized government and military bureaucracies for being “frustrating, adversarial and unnecessarily complex.” Gates made his comments during a “Mental Health Summit” convened by Eric K. Shinseki, the secretary of Veterans Affairs who previously served as Army chief of staff. (The New York Times, 10/26/09)
Study Finds Americans Don’t Get Enough Sleep
Americans suffer from a chronic lack of sleep, according to a new study, which says the problem is a bigger public health problem than is generally recognized. The report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) analyzed American sleep patterns, which was gathered by state health departments in phone interviews with more than 400,000 adults around the United States last year. The study found that almost one-third of Americans get less than seven hours of sleep per night, which is generally considered the minimum for an average adult to feel rested.
Not getting enough sleep has been tied to mental distress, depression, anxiety, obesity, hypertension, diabetes, high cholesterol and certain risk behaviors including cigarette smoking, physical inactivity and heavy drinking. (HealthDay News, 10/29/09)
NFL To Turn Over Injury Records
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has agreed to turn over the league's medical records to a House panel investigating whether there is a link between football injuries and brain problems experienced by former players later in their lives. U.S. Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, asked for the records and said he wants the panel to determine whether it needs to take action to prevent head injures in football. The congressional investigation comes at a time when head injuries in football—specifically concussions—are being increasingly scrutinized. Reports have pointed to a link between repeated blows to the head received by players and the onset of symptoms similar to dementia. (The New York Times, 10/28/09)
Latest Research
Depression Goes Untreated in Working Mothers: More than 65 percent of U.S. mothers with depression don't receive adequate treatment, a new study finds. Black, Hispanic and other minority mothers are least likely to receive adequate treatment. Mothers with health insurance are three times more likely to receive adequate treatment than those without insurance, according to the study, which appears online in the Journal of Behavioral Health Services and Research. The analysis of national data on 2,130 mothers with depression also found that working mothers were less likely to receive adequate treatment, possibly because long work hours make it difficult for them to find time to seek treatment. This means that workplaces could prove a useful location for depression intervention, wrote the researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health. (HealthDay News, 10/27/09)
Phone Counseling for Depression Offers Substantial Benefits: An intensive telephone counseling program for people with depression offers substantial benefits at moderate cost, U.S. researchers say. They studied 600 people who were randomly assigned to one of three types of care for their depression. One group received telephone care management, which included five outreach calls for monitoring, support, feedback and care coordination. Another group received telephone care management plus psychotherapy, which added eight sessions of structured cognitive behavioral therapy over the phone with up to four additional reinforcement calls. The third group received usual care. The two-year study, which appears in the Archives of General Psychiatry, found that telephone care management alone led to an average gain of 29 depression-free days and a $676 increase in outpatient health care costs, compared with usual care. Telephone care management plus psychotherapy led to a gain of 46 depression-free days and $397 in added outpatient costs. (HealthDay News, 10/27/09)
Antipsychotic Drugs Can Bring on Rapid Weight Gain in Kids: Young children and adolescents who take the newest generation of antipsychotic medications risk rapid weight gain and metabolic changes that could lead to diabetes, hypertension and other illnesses, according to a new study. The study, published in The Journal of the American Medical Association, found that 257 young children and adolescents in New York City and on Long Island added 8 to 15 percent to their weight after taking the pills for less than 12 weeks. Although the drugs’ influence on weight and metabolism had been previously detected, experts said the speed and magnitude of the effects found in the study were greater than previously reported. (The New York Times, 10/28/09)
HEADLINES at Mental Health America
A Recovery for Americans’ Mental Health: In his psychologytoday.com blog, Dr. David Shern writes that any new stimulus should include efforts to respond to the impact of the recession on mental health.
Mental Health America Applauds Bipartisan Legislation To Help Treat Depression And Bipolar Disorders: Bill would establish national centers of excellence. (link)
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*Mental Health America MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS
The steep downturn in the U.S. economy and the accompanying rise in unemployment are having a negative impact on Americans' mental health. David Shern, president and CEO of Mental Health America, says the survey clearly shows that for many people, financial distress is translating into serious psychological distress, and in some cases, to thoughts of suicide. Voice of America, “Survey Shows High Rate of Depression Among U.S. Unemployed,” October 27, 2009
Mental illness has long been unjustly stigmatized in society. Thankfully, the views of and treatments for mental illness have changed. According to Mental Health America, during the course of a year, more than 54 million Americans are affected by mental disorders. The Daily Star, “Schwerd was out of line,” October 28, 2009
An analysis of mental health courts show that people who appear before them are more likely to participate in treatment and less likely to get rearrested than those who go through traditional courts. "Most of them, I think, have been good for patients, good for the community, good for everybody," said Mark Heyrman, a clinical-law professor at the University of Chicago Law School and board member of Mental Health America. Philadelphia Daily News, “To fight the demons, a court of best resort,” October 29, 2009
Stay Up to Date With More News, Views and Tools
- Survey reveals obstacles to health care for people who have schizophrenia
- New report reveals link between states’ depression status and access to treatment
- 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 Relations.
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