Healio (5/21) reported, “Over half of employees reported that their employers have become more accommodating to their mental health needs during the COVID-19 pandemic,” the “results of a national public opinion poll by the American Psychiatric Association” conclude. That poll, which was an “online survey” that “received responses from 1,000 adults aged 18 years or older,” found, however, “that fewer employees feel comfortable talking openly about mental health at work compared with last year.” APA President Vivian Pender, MD, said, “What’s worrisome is that given this discussion, many people, particularly younger people, are still worried about retaliation if they take time off for mental health. This is stigma in action, and it has to stop.” APA CEO and Medical Director Saul Levin, MD, MPA, stated, “I encourage business and organizational leaders to visit the APA Foundation’s Center for Workplace Mental Health, which has resources on ensuring employees’ mental well-being through COVID and beyond.”

Related Links:

— “Poll: Employers have accommodated worker mental health in pandemic, but problems remain “Joe Gramigna, Healio, May 21, 2021

CNN (5/19, Woodyatt) reports, “There is no such thing as a ‘safe’ level of drinking, with increased consumption of alcohol associated with poorer brain health,” investigators concluded in “an observational study [pdf], which has not yet been peer-reviewed.” The study examined “the relationship between the self-reported alcohol intake of some 25,000 people in the UK, and their brain scans,” revealing that “the more people drank, the less the volume of their gray matter.” Researchers also found that “consuming any amount of alcohol was worse than not drinking it.”

Related Links:

— “Drinking any amount of alcohol causes damage to the brain, study finds “Amy Woodyatt, CNN, May 19, 2021

HealthDay (5/20, Norton) reports “researchers found that older adults with healthy habits had a lower risk of developing dementia, versus the less health-conscious – even if a parent or sibling had suffered from the brain disease.” In the study, the researchers focused on six healthy habits: healthy eating, regular exercise, not smoking, drinking only in moderation, getting enough sleep, and avoiding obesity. The findings were scheduled to be presented at the American Heart Association online meeting.

Related Links:

— “Healthy Living Helps Prevent Dementia, Even If It Runs in the Family “Amy Norton, HealthDay, May 20, 2021

Healio (5/20, Ernst) reports researchers found “patients with a higher household income received a dementia diagnosis earlier than individuals with a lower household income, indicating a ‘social inequality’ in dementia evaluations.” The findings were published in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Higher income leads to earlier dementia diagnosis, less severe disease at diagnosis “Julia Ernst, Healio, May 20, 2021

Psychiatric News (5/20) reports, “Managed care organizations must use medical necessity criteria and assessment tools developed by nonprofit mental health and substance use disorder specialty organizations when making coverage-related determinations,” was what the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and “seven other medical organizations told the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in a friend-of-the-court brief [PDF] filed yesterday in the case David Wit, et. al., v. United Behavioral Health (UBH).” That “brief is informed by a 2020 APA Position Statement on Level of Care Criteria for Acute Psychiatric Treatment.” In a press release, APA President Vivian Pender, MD, stated, “Standards of care should be based on the best treatment for patients, not the bottom line.” APA CEO and Medical Director Saul Levin, MD, MPA, said, “APA calls upon courts, legislatures, and insurance commissioners to require insurance companies to deliver the care for which patients and employers have paid based upon evidence-based, objective, and patient-centered guidelines, rather than company profits.”

Related Links:

— “Court Ruling in Wit v. UBH Should be Upheld, Urges APA, Psychiatric News, May 20, 2021