In the US News & World Report (8/11) “Policy Dose” opinion blog, psychiatrist Lloyd Sederer, MD, medical director of the New York State Office of Mental Health, writes that the US is now “witnessing a surge in legislation that could improve the lives of people with serious mental illness, their families and even the safety of our communities.” Dr. Sederer discusses mental health reform legislation now pending before Congress, observing, “All this focus and attention is good and likely necessary to move what has been near federal paralysis on mental health care reform.”

Related Links:

— “America Wakes Up to Mental Health,” Lloyd Sederer, US News & World Report, August 11, 2015.

The New York Times (8/8, Grady, Subscription Publication) reports that many of the more than 13,000 survivors of the Ebola outbreak in Western Africa are facing ongoing health issues along with psychological problems ranging from depression to PTSD. About 50 percent of survivors are reporting “chronic joint pain that is often severe enough to prevent them from working,” according to WHO senior consultant Dr. Daniel Bausch. Additional ongoing problems include “persistent headaches, extreme fatigue and difficulty concentrating,” and about 25 percent of survivors have various eye problems, with some reporting lost vision or complete blindness.

Related Links:

— “Ebola Survivors Face Lingering Pain, Fatigue and Depression,” Denise Grady, New York Times, August 7, 2015.

The NBC News (8/7, Fox) reports that approximately 4.2 million “US adults admit they drink and drive at least sometimes,” according to survey results published Aug. 7 in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. This is most likely “an underestimate,” because “people might not confess to drinking and driving, they might not admit it to themselves, and the study didn’t cover teenage drivers under the age of 18.” Amy Jewett, MPH, of the CDC, and colleagues wrote, “Alcohol-impaired driving crashes account for approximately one third of all crash fatalities in the United States.”

Related Links:

— “More Than 4 Million Adults Admit They Drink and Drive,” Maggie Fox, NBC News, August 6, 2015.

According to the Washington Post (8/7, Deane), a study published in the journal Surgical Neurology International suggests that “people are developing dementia a decade before they were 20 years ago.” After comparing “21 Western countries between the years 1989 and 2010,” researchers “found that the disease is now being regularly diagnosed in people in their late 40s and that death rates are soaring.” The study authors theorize that environmental factors, such as air pollution and increased use of insecticides, may be the reason.

Related Links:

— “People are developing dementia earlier and dying of it more, a study shows,” Daniela Deane, Washington Post, August 6, 2015.

The New York Times (8/7, A20, Stewart, Subscription Publication) reports that as part of the $22 million NYC Safe mental health initiative announced yesterday by New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, experts in the mental health field “will fan out to New York City’s homeless shelters, into the streets and to other places to treat mentally ill people who exhibit violent behavior.” In addition, city agencies, “including the Department of Homeless Services and the New York Police Department, will share information with one another about those people to make sure they are being treated, city officials said.” Monitoring the treatment received will be a team from the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

Related Links:

— “New York City Initiative Aims to Help Mentally Ill People Who Get Violent,” Nikita Stewart, New York Times, August 6, 2015.