In its continuing “The Cost of Not Caring” series, USA Today (12/23, Szabo) reports in a 2,700-word article that “according to the National Institute of Mental Health, neglect of Americans with serious mental illness costs the nation $444 billion a year – mostly from lost earnings – and consigns millions to lives of suffering, addiction, homelessness or incarceration.”

However, research suggests that “supported housing, which provides a variety of services beyond low-cost apartments, not only reduces homelessness, but also helps participants spend less time in shelters, hospitals and jail.” In addition, “supported employment programs, which provide one-on-one help to people with serious mental illness, have been proved effective in 20 high-quality studies,” in some cases even tripling the rate of employment of people challenged by severe psychiatric illnesses.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Agency has found, however, that just two percent of people in US public mental health systems are getting either of these services.

Related Links:

— “Solutions to woes of mentally ill exist but aren’t used,” Liz Szabo, USA Today, December 22, 2014.

The New Orleans Times-Picayune (12/21, O’Donoghue) reported that according to a report issued by the Pew Charitable Trusts, “Louisiana has decreased government spending on mental health” over the past two fiscal year budget cycles, even though 29 states and the District of Columbia “increased mental health spending during the current fiscal year.” In addition, the advocacy organization Mental Health America “ranked Louisiana as one of the worst states for mental health services and access, according to a recent report.”

Related Links:

— “Most states increase mental health budgets, but not Louisiana, Pew reports,” Julia O’Donoghue, New Orelans Times-Picayune, December 19, 2014.

MedPage Today (12/22, Walker) reports that according to a study published online in the journal Pediatrics, teens appear to be “more likely to engage in substance use and risky behavior if they were exposed to symptoms of maternal depression during their middle childhood years.” The study, which involved “2,910 mother-youth pairs,” revealed that “adolescents who had been exposed to ‘high symptoms’ of maternal depression from ages four to eight, and ‘decreasing symptoms’ as they got older were more likely to engage in ‘nonviolent delinquent behaviors’ (P=0.03) as teenagers than adolescents exposed to a ‘lower level of maternal depressive symptoms.’” Such behaviors could include staying out all night, destroying property or “running away.”

Related Links:

— “Do Depressed Moms Predispose Kids to Behavorial Problems?,” Molly Walker, MedPage Today, December 22, 2014.

In a 1,880-word story titled “Substance Abuse Treatment Often Impossible to Find,” USA Today (12/19, Copeland) reported in its ongoing series called “Mental Illness: The Cost of Not Caring,” that research suggests that “about two-thirds of people who have a substance abuse condition also have a mental health condition, says Ron Manderscheid, executive director of the National Association of County Behavioral Health and Developmental Disability Directors.”

Many substance abusers cannot conquer addiction until they seek professional help for underlying mental illness. Unfortunately, “the lack of treatment options for people with substance addictions and mental illness ‘remains a huge problem in the United States,’ says Frances Levin, chair of the American Psychiatric Association’s Council on Addiction Psychiatry.”

Dr. Levin added, “Programs need to be set up to recognize general mental health issues as well as attending to substance abuse problems.”

Related Links:

— “Substance abuse treatment often impossible to find,” Larry Copeland, USA Today, December 19, 2014.

The Kansas Health Institute (12/19, Smith) reports that in an article published in the Journal of Special Education, Jason Travers, an assistant professor in the special education department at the University of Kansas, “demonstrates that Hispanic and black children are diagnosed with autism at lower rates than white children.” Instead, many of these children may be diagnosed with “adjustment disorder” or having some sort of “intellectual disability.” Currently, according to statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one out of every 68 youngsters in the US has been diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder.

Related Links:

— “KU researcher questions lower autism diagnoses among minority children,” Alex Smith, Kansas Health Institute, December 18, 2014.