The Los Angeles Times (7/19, Goldberg) said that on Wednesday, veteran Ruth Moore spoke about her struggle to obtain post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) benefits from Veterans Affairs after she was raped by a superior in the Navy. She made her comments while testifying before a House Veterans Affairs subcommittee. According to the Times, US Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-ME) is “sponsoring a bill that would allow victims of military sexual trauma seeking disability benefits to provide only a diagnosis of PTSD and an opinion from a doctor that an assault could have caused the disorder.” Pingree stated, “It’s outrageous that men and women who sign up to defend our country end up being victims of sexual assault in the first place. Then to deny them the help they need to recover is simply unacceptable.”

Related Links:

— “Military sex assault victims’ PTSD claims neglected, panel told, “Jamie Goldberg, Los Angeles Times, July 19, 2012.

MedWire (7/20, Cowen) reports, “People with serious mental illnesses are significantly more likely to experience injuries than the general population,” according to a study published online June 2 in the journal Injury Prevention. “In a seven-year study of 6,234 Medicaid recipients with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or other serious mental illnesses, the researchers found that the incidence of injuries requiring a visit to the emergency department or hospital admittance was 80% higher than in the general population.” In addition, investigators “found that the risk for fatal injuries was 4.7 times greater in people with serious mental illnesses, compared with the general population.”

Related Links:

— “Injury risk increased in patients with serious mental illnesses,”Mark Cowen, MedWire News, July 20, 2012.

The CBS News (7/20, Jaslow) “HealthPop” blog reports, “Drinking alcohol during pregnancy is the leading preventable cause of birth defects and developmental disabilities in children, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.” Yet, “In the latest issue of its journal Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, the CDC investigates drinking rates among pregnant women, and finds about one in 13 pregnant women drink,” and “of those women, almost one in five reported binge drinking…during pregnancy.”

Reuters (7/20, Beasley) reports that 10 percent of women with college degrees reported having a drink in the past month as opposed to just five percent of those with a high school diploma or less. The report was based on a telephone survey of 345,076 women aged 18 to 44 conducted 2006-2010.

Related Links:

— “1 in 13 pregnant women drink alcohol, CDC says, “Ryan Jaslow, CBS News, July 19, 2012.

Time (7/19, Futrelle) reports in “Moneyland” that “a new study of workers in the state of Michigan…found that those who were worried about their jobs were significantly more likely to develop depression or suffer anxiety attacks or both.” A previous study “by the same lead researcher, sociologist Sarah Burgard of the University of Michigan, found that employees worried about their jobs were more likely to suffer from depression and poor health than those who lost their jobs and got a new one.” Meanwhile, “research by Stuart Whitaker, an occupational-health expert at the University of Cumbria in England, also suggests that worrying about being fired may be worse than being fired.”

Related Links:

— “Is High Unemployment Making Us All Sick?, “David Futrelle, TIME, July 18, 2012.

In the “Opinionator” blog in the New York Times (7/18), Tina Rosenberg wrote, “According to the World Health Organization, the disease that robs the most adults of the most years of productive life is not AIDS, not heart disease, not cancer. It is depression,” particularly “in places that have experienced war, disaster or crushing deprivation.” Rosenberg pointed out, “According to the World Health Organization, three-quarters of the world’s neuropsychiatric disorders are in low-income or low-middle income countries.” Rosenberg goes on to depict the problems of depression in the developing world and the measures various countries are taking to improve the mental health of their citizens.

Related Links:

— “Fighting Depression, One Village at a Time, “Tina Rosenberg , “Opinionetor” NYT, July 18, 2012.

Stars And Stripes (7/19, Shane) reports, “Despite millions spent treating post-traumatic stress disorder, defense and Veterans Affairs officials have little idea how effective those programs are because they don’t track cases closely enough, a new report contends.” Officials from the Institute of Medicine (IOM), which “issued the report last week at the request of Congress, said the departments need a better handle on what treatments work.” In “separate statements, Pentagon and VA officials did not address the issue of tracking treatment success rates, but said their departments have worked closely to find solutions to the PTSD problems.” The KUOW-FM Seattle, WA (7/19) website publishes a similar story.

Newspaper Says Conclusions Of IOM Report Are “Startling.” In an editorial, the Columbus (GA) Ledger-Enquirer(7/18) calls the conclusions of the IOM report “startling.” The IOM “plans a follow-up analysis in 2014. Let’s hope that one can say we acted” on the IOM’s first analysis.

Related Links:

— “Report: DOD, VA don’t adequately track success rates of PTSD treatment, “Leo Shane III, Stars and Stripes, July 18, 2012.

The Military Times (7/18, Kime) reports, “An effort to persuade the Obama administration to legalize marijuana for sufferers of post-traumatic stress has met with a sound rejection from the White House. Responding to a petition signed by 8,258 people on the White House website, Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy Gil Kerlikowske wrote last month that marijuana is not a ‘benign drug’ and does not meet standards of safe or effective medicine.” The “Allow United States Disabled Military Veterans Access To Medical Marijuana To Treat Their PTSD” petition came from Veterans for Medical Cannabis Access Executive Director Mike Krawitz, who “said he launched the drive partially out of concern that veterans sometimes risk losing their Veterans Affairs Department medical coverage if they are found to smoke pot.”

Related Links:

— “No pot for PTSD, White House says, “Patricia Kime, Military Times, July 17, 2012.

HealthDay (7/17, Gordon) reports on a study published online July 16 in Pediatrics finding that “the housing crisis that has left so many people without a permanent home may have worsened another serious problem: child abuse.” The study’s lead author said, “We need to recognize that losing a home is very stressful, and we need to let families know that it’s OK to ask for help.” The study was based on a review of “data from 38 hospitals across the United States included in the Pediatric Hospital Information System database,” finding that “the rates of child abuse and traumatic brain injury admissions increased by 0.79 percent and three percent, respectively, from 2000 to 2009,” while “all-cause injuries in children decreased by 0.8 percent per year.” The NBC News (7/17, Fox) “Vitals” blog also covers the story.

Related Links:

— “Child Abuse Rises When Economy Sags: Study,”Serena Gordon, Health Day, July 16, 2012.

MedPage Today (7/17, Walsh) reports, “Adolescent girls with a variety of eating disorders — even conditions less severe than anorexia or bulimia — are at risk for obesity and alcohol and drug use,” according to a study published online July 16 in the journal Pediatrics and sponsored by the National Institutes of Health. “Among those who reported binge eating but not purging, the risk for becoming overweight or obese was doubled (OR 1.90, 95% CI 1.04 to 3.48) compared with healthy peers,” the study of 8,594 young girls found. “Similarly, teenage girls who purged more than once each week even without binge eating were at risk for starting to use drugs (OR 1.72, 95% CI 0.97 to 3.06) or to overuse alcohol frequently (OR 1.84, 95% CI 1.28 to 2.65),” researchers reported.

Related Links:

— “Eating Disorders Tied to Drug Use, Drinking, “Nancy Walsh, MedPage Today, July 16, 2012.

CQ (7/17, Norman, Subscription Publication) reports, “People with serious mental illnesses have a lifespan of 53 years on average, often dying early from suicide and injury — but also frequently from chronic medical conditions, according to a briefing Monday by the National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare.” Because of this, “advocates for people with mental illnesses say that makes it imperative that the nation better bring together behavioral and primary healthcare in the same place.” The piece adds, “While since 2009, the Department of Health and Human Services has had a grant program that unites community mental health clinics with primary care sites and independent initiatives around the country, advocates say much more work is needed to improve health outcomes for people with mental illnesses whose physical problems often go untreated.”