According to Modern Healthcare (6/20, Tepper, Subscription Publication), although “the U.S. faces an ongoing mental health crisis in the aftermath of the illness, death, social disruption and economic hardships of the COVID-19 pandemic…chronic gaps persist in access to mental healthcare despite the enactment of major” mental health parity “laws meant to guarantee that health insurance covers these services.”

This year, “more than 20% of U.S. adults reported having mental illnesses…according a survey by the advocacy organization Mental Health America,” and “among those, 55% said they were unable to obtain treatment.” While “a shortage of mental and behavioral health practitioners is a significant part of the problem, as is a stigma against seeking care,” it still comes down to the fact that “health insurance coverage of mental healthcare doesn’t measure up to other forms of care, particularly when it comes to the size and variety of clinicians participating in provider networks.”

Related Links:

— “Why insurers’ mental health coverage falls short,” Nona Tepper, Modern Healthcare, June 20, 2023

MedPage Today (6/20, Henderson) reports, “Most parents and caregivers said they supported mental health screening for their children in primary care settings, according to” the findings of “a multinational survey” published online June 20 in JAMA Network Open. The study revealed that “among over 900 parents and caregivers from the U.S., U.K., and Canada, as well as 16 other countries, 92.1% said they wanted their child screened for mental health issues at regular intervals.”

Related Links:

— MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)

According to the Washington Post (6/20, Bever), primary care professionals may begin asking patients “about feelings of anxiety as part of a routine checkup, based on” a new recommendation statement from the US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) published June 20 in JAMA. The USPSTF’s recommendations stem “from concerns about a burgeoning mental health crisis, with growing concerns about depression, anxiety and suicide.” The task force’s “new guidelines state that asymptomatic adults ages 19 through 64, including those who are pregnant and postpartum, should be screened for anxiety disorders, using questionnaires and other screening tools.” While “primary care physicians can prescribe medication,” in those “cases in which the severity of the illness becomes too complex for primary care physicians to manage with medication, a psychiatrist would take over medication management, said” Petros Levounis, MD, MA, President of the American Psychiatric Association.

NBC News (6/20, Edwards) reports, “This is the first time the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force has recommended routine mental health screening in primary care settings.” The task force’s “guidance may influence insurance company reimbursements, but” physicians “are not required to follow the group’s recommendations.” The USPSTF’s “recommendations are considered final,” however, “and mirror draft guidance on the topic was released last fall.”

According to Psychiatric News (6/20), Murray B. Stein, MD, MPH, and Linda L. Hill, MD, MPH, both of the University of California, San Diego, wrote an accompanying editorial in which they observed, “The uptake of these new anxiety screening recommendations should provide an impetus and an opportunity for primary care clinicians to become more comfortable with diagnosing and treating anxiety disorders, which may require additional training.”

Also covering the story are MedPage Today (6/20, DePeau-Wilson), Healio (6/20, Bascom), HealthDay(6/20, Gotkine), and HCPlive (6/20, Walter).

Related Links:

— “All adults under 65 should be screened for anxiety, health panel says,” Erika Edwards, NBC News, June 20, 2023

CNN (6/19, LaMotte) reports a study suggests that “people with alcohol use disorder…were significantly impaired on cognitive and motor tests up to three hours after downing an alcoholic drink designed to mimic their typical habits.” The research appears to dispel the “popular perception that experienced drinkers can handle their liquor.” The findings were published in Alcohol: Clinical and Experimental Research.

Related Links:

— “Heavy drinkers really don’t ‘handle their liquor,’ study says,” Sandee LaMotte, CNN, June 19, 2023

Psychiatric News (6/16) reported, “The first two years of oral contraceptive use may raise the risk of depression in women and adolescents compared with their peers who have never used oral contraceptives,” investigators concluded after having “analyzed data from 264,557 women from the UK Biobank.” The study revealed that women “who used oral contraceptives had a 79% increased risk of depression during their first two years of oral contraceptive use compared with their peers who had never used oral contraceptives,” while “adolescents – those who began using oral contraceptives at or before the age of 20 years – had a 95% increased risk of depression during their first two years of oral contraceptive use compared with their peers who had never used oral contraceptives.” The findings were published online June 12 in the journal Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences.

Related Links:

— “Depression Risk May Rise During First Two Years of Oral Contraceptive Use,” Psychiatric News, June 16, 2023