The Chicago Tribune (1/9, Graham) reports that Medicaid expansion under the auspices of the Affordable Care Act may provide additional opportunities for “poor people struggling with mental illnesses.” However, the expansion in coverage causes concerns among some analysts that some people may still have difficulty accessing mental health professionals, whom the Tribune notes are often in short supply in disadvantaged areas.

Related Links:

— “Doors to treatment opening for poor people struggling with mental illnesses, “Judith Graham, The Chicago Tribune, January 9, 2014.

One major television network, several major US newspapers, and numerous online media sources cover a Vital Signs report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday showing that many Americans are drinking too much alcohol, even though they are not alcoholics, and that many of these individuals have never discussed their alcohol use with their physicians.

NBC Nightly News (1/7, story 8, 1:50, Williams) reported that the CDC has released a new report revealing that “many millions of Americans drink too much,” a problem rarely discussed with their physicians. NBC News chief medical Editor Nancy Snyderman, MD, explained, “At least 38 million people in the United States drink too much and most are not alcoholics.” Still, 75 percent of binge drinkers claim never to have had a discussion about their alcohol use with their physicians. CDC Director Thomas Frieden, MD, MPH, was shown saying that a brief interview with a physician “can result in a substantial reduction of problem drinking for a long period of time.”

Related Links:

— “January 2014 Vital Signs Issue: Alcohol Screening and Counseling,CDC Vital Signs, January, 2014.

HealthDay (1/8, Goodman) reports that according to a study published online Jan. 6 in the journal Pediatrics, “newer antidepressants all seem to carry about the same risk for suicidal thoughts and behaviors” in children being treated for depression. After reviewing “medical records of nearly 37,000 school-aged kids who were enrolled in Tennessee’s Medicaid program between 1995 and 2006,” researchers found that approximately “one percent of kids who were treated with newer antidepressants – including selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) – attempted suicide.” However, the suicide risk was increased in youngsters who were simultaneously taking multiple antidepressants.

Related Links:

— “Kids’ Suicide Risk Similar for All Newer Antidepressants: Study, “Brenda Goodman, HealthDay, January 7, 2014.

MedPage Today (1/8, Gever) reports that according to research partly sponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health published in the Jan. 8 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, “smoking rates among Americans with mental illnesses didn’t budge from 2004 to 2011, a period during which rates in the rest of the population fell 14%.” In fact, “data from the federal Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) found that, among respondents with mental illnesses, 25.3% reported current smoking in 2004-2005 (95% CI 24.2%-26.3%), versus 24.9% in 2010-2011 (95% CI 23.8%-26.0%, P=0.50) after adjustments for other predictors of smoking such as income and education.” Meanwhile, over that same time frame, “adjusted smoking rates in other MEPS respondents declined from 19.2% (95% CI 18.7%-19.7%) to 16.5% (95% CI 16.0%-17.0%, P<0.001),” the study found. Psychiatric News (1/8) also covers the story. Related Links:

— “Smoking Rates Still High Among the Mentally Ill, “John Gever, MedPage Today, January 7, 2014.

The Washington Times (1/8, Sherfinski) reports that the Obama Administration is considering “weighing whether people deemed mentally ill as minors should be barred from getting guns as adults.” On Jan. 7, the Department of Justice, “which is trying to bolster the national background check system, asked the public to comment on whether information about mental illnesses of minors should be included in the databases.” Yesterday, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) also “published a proposed rule…to try to make it easier to disclose peoples’ identities to the” National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS).

Related Links:

— “Mental illness in youth could prevent gun purchases in adulthood, ” David Sherfinski, The Washington Times, January 7, 2014.