The AP (9/16, Stobbe) reports, “A new study ties the COVID-19 pandemic to an ‘alarming’ increase in obesity in U.S. children and teenagers.” The study also indicates a “vicious cycle,” as “the pandemic appears to be worsening the nation’s longstanding obesity epidemic, and obesity can put people at risk for more severe illness after coronavirus infection.”

The Hill (9/16, Coleman) reports, “The CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) released Thursday determined that the monthly rate of BMI increase among 2- to 19-year-olds accelerated during the pandemic to reach 0.1 kg/m² per month,” while before the pandemic, “the rate of increase was 0.052 kg/m² per month.”

MedPage Today (9/16, Walker) reports the authors “divided the children and teens into BMI categories, and found significant increases in the rate of BMI among all categories except underweight.” Additionally, “among those with overweight, moderate obesity, and severe obesity, the rates of BMI increase more than doubled, the team said, and even those with healthy weight had a rate of BMI change that almost doubled (ratio 1.78).” They found that “these changes were most pronounced among elementary school children ages 6 to 11, whose rate of BMI change more than doubled versus the pre-pandemic rate (ratio 2.50).”

Related Links:

— “Study: Childhood obesity in U.S. accelerated during pandemic “Mike Stobbe, AP, September 16, 2021

Healio (9/16, Keenan) reports, “Suicide risk was highest in the first 30 days after ideation diagnosis among certain United States Army soldiers, such as women and combat medics, according to” researchers who “looked at sociodemographic and service-related characteristics, psychiatric diagnoses, physical health care visits, injuries and history of family violence or crime perpetration or victimization.” Investigators “noted that neither PTSD nor depression diagnoses were linked to increased risk for suicide attempt in those with ideation.” The findings were published in the American Journal of Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Attempted suicide high among some soldiers soon after ideation diagnosis “Julie S Keenan, Healio, September 16, 2021

Healio (9/15, VanDewater) reports, “Remote school may do more harm to the mental health of older and Black and Hispanic kids and those from lower-income families,” researchers concluded in a “nationally representative, cross-sectional study” that “surveyed 2,324 adults aged 18 to 64 years who had at least one child aged two to 17 years living at home from Dec. 2, 2020, to Dec. 21, 2020, about the child’s mental health challenges (emotional problems, peer problems, conduct, hyperactivity) and whether they were receiving remote, in-person or hybrid instruction.” The findings were published online Sept. 3 in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Remote learning impact on mental health may vary by age, race, ethnicity, family income “Kalie VanDewater, Healio, September 15, 2021

Psychiatric News (9/15) reports, “The federal government is proposing to permanently allow payment under the Medicare program for ‘audio-only’ telehealth mental health services,” which have “been temporarily reimbursed as part of the government’s response to the COVID-19 public health emergency.” In addition, the government “would retain other temporarily reimbursed telehealth services through 2023 in order to evaluate whether those services should be permanently added to the list of covered Medicare services.” These “recommended changes are part of the proposed 2022 Physician Fee Schedule [PDF]” by the CMS and are seen as “a victory for psychiatrists and their patients for which APA has strongly advocated.” In a letter (PDF) to the CMS Administrator, APA CEO and Medical Director Saul Levin, MD, MPA, stated, “Audio-only services have been a lifeline for patients for whom it is the only option when seeking mental health and substance use disorder treatment.”

Related Links:

— “CMS Proposes Adding Payment for Telehealth Services by Mental Health Professionals, Psychiatric News, September 15, 2021

mHealth Intelligence (9/15, Wicklund) reports “telehealth use by physicians jumped from 25 percent in 2018 to almost 80 percent in 2020, while almost 85 percent of psychiatrists connected with the patients via video visit or telephone during the height of the pandemic, according to” an American Medical Association survey(PDF). The data show “psychiatrists were most likely to adopt telehealth,” pediatricians “scored above 76 percent,” and dermatologists “topped the list of those using video visits, at 87.3 percent, followed by urologists at 87.2 percent.”

Related Links:

— “AMA Survey Charts Explosive Growth of Telehealth Services in 2020 “Eric Wicklund, mHealth Intelligence, September 15, 2021