HealthDay (7/4, Dallas) reported, “Students with visible disabilities and those receiving special education services for behavioral problems are at greater risk of being bullied and of bullying others,” according to a study published June 27 in the Journal of School Psychology. In the study of “more than 800 special-ed and general-ed students between the ages of nine and 16 from nine different schools,” researchers found that “not only were special-ed students at greater risk for being bullied or bullying others,” but also that “students with visible or more obvious disabilities, such as language or hearing impairments or mild mental handicaps, were victimized most often.”

Related Links:

— “Special-Ed Students at Greater Risk of Bullying, Being Bullied: Study, “Mary Elizabeth Dallas, HealthDay, July 3, 2012.

The Washington Post (7/5, Kliff) “Wonkblog” reports, “Health care spending for 14- to 18-year-olds has grown faster than any other age group with private coverage.” The blog post explains that according to a report from the Health Care Cost Institute, one of the factors driving up health spending for teenagers is “the increased use of mental health services. In 2010, the average teenager was prescribed 1.2 central nervous system drugs, which treat conditions like depression and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.”

Related Links:

— “Maybe we should blame teenagers for our health spending problems, “Sarah Kliff, The Washington Post, July 3, 2012.

Modern Healthcare (7/4, Zigmond, Subscription Publication) reported, “Behavioral healthcare groups have inched a little closer to their goal of ensuring that the country’s mental-healthcare facilities are eligible for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act’s meaningful-use incentives.” Just “before leaving for this week’s July 4 recess, Reps. Tim Murphy (R-Pa.) and Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) introduced the Behavioral Health Information Technology Act of 2012, which would include behavioral health [professionals] — such as psychiatric hospitals, mental-health and substance-abuse professionals, community mental-health centers, and inpatient or outpatient substance abuse treatment facilities — in the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health, or HITECH, Act that was enacted as part of the Recovery Act in 2009.” Last year, “Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) introduced similar legislation in the Senate.”

According to the Huffington Post (7/4, Wood), veterans who fought in Iraq or Afghanistan are “at risk of a ‘downward spiral’ that leads to depression, substance abuse and sometimes suicide, as Eric Shinseki, secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs, said in a recent speech.” Shinseki’s agency, which operates a veterans’ suicide crisis line and “70 mobile outreach vans,” is “making a determined and costly effort to reach those who live in remote areas or who may be unaware of VA services.” The mental health budget for VA and its mental health staff have both increased in recent years. The Post explained that VA is “also expanding its secure teleconferencing facilities and expects this year to provide 200,000 mental health consultations with veterans who lack easy access to its outpatient clinics or outreach vans.”

Related Links:

— “Iraq, Afghanistan War Veterans Struggle With Combat Trauma, “David Wood, The Huffington Post, July 4, 2012.

The Baltimore Sun (7/5, Wenger) reports, “A dramatic change in how Maryland pays for substance abuse treatment programs is leaving some [care organizations] short on cash and displacing more than 200 drug and alcohol addicts, even as the state’s four-year transition to a new funding system has significantly increased the number of people getting help.” Now, “under the new system, the state will pay for more treatments through Medicaid reimbursements, a strategy that officials say will ultimately provide health care access to more Marylanders.” While “many addiction specialists agree that the move will eventually help more people…right now they’re trying to find ways to keep displaced clients in treatment” as “centers are facing the loss of millions of dollars in grants.”

Related Links:

— “Substance abuse funding change challenges some Md. providers, “Yvonne Wenger, The Baltimore Sun, July 4, 2012.