Mental Health

Private Medicare, Medicaid Plans Exaggerate In-Network Mental Health Options, Watchdogs Say

Private Medicare, Medicaid Plans Exaggerate In-Network Mental Health Options, Watchdogs Say

Companies running private Medicare and Medicaid insurance plans inaccurately list many mental health professionals as being available to treat the plans’ members, a new federal watchdog report says. The investigators allege that some insurers effectively set up “ghost networks” of psychologists, psychiatrists, and other mental health professionals who purportedly have agreed to treat patients covered […]

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Cops on Ketamine? Largely Unregulated Mental Health Treatment Faces Hurdles

Cops on Ketamine? Largely Unregulated Mental Health Treatment Faces Hurdles

If you or someone you know may be experiencing a mental health crisis, contact the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by dialing or texting “988.” ASHEVILLE, N.C. — A few months ago, Waynesville Police Sgt. Paige Shell was about to give up hope of getting better. The daily drip of violence, death, and misery from

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An HIV Outbreak in Maine Shows the Risk of Trump’s Crackdown on Homelessness and Drug Use

An HIV Outbreak in Maine Shows the Risk of Trump’s Crackdown on Homelessness and Drug Use

Penobscot County, Maine, is grappling with the largest HIV outbreak in the state’s history. Home to Bangor, a city of roughly 32,000, the county has identified 28 new cases over nearly two years. That’s seven times the typical number for that length of time. Nearly all cases are among people who use drugs and are

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How Older People Are Reaping Brain Benefits From New Tech

How Older People Are Reaping Brain Benefits From New Tech

It started with a high school typing course. Wanda Woods enrolled because her father advised that typing proficiency would lead to jobs. Sure enough, the federal Environmental Protection Agency hired her as an after-school worker while she was still a junior. Her supervisor “sat me down and put me on a machine called a word

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The National Suicide Hotline For LGBTQ+ Youth Went Dead. States Are Scrambling To Help.

The National Suicide Hotline For LGBTQ+ Youth Went Dead. States Are Scrambling To Help.

On July 17, the option went dead for LGBTQ+ youth to access specialized mental health support from the national 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration said a month earlier that it would no longer “silo” services and would instead “focus on serving all help seekers.” That meant the

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California Taps Medicaid To Train and Recruit Behavioral Health Workers

California Taps Medicaid To Train and Recruit Behavioral Health Workers

Despite recent efforts to bolster California’s behavioral health workforce, the state is operating with only about two-thirds of the psychiatrists and therapists it needs. The problem is so severe it’s making it hard to backfill retiring practitioners, particularly in the state’s rural areas.  “It feels helpless, because there is more than you can fix. There’s

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As California’s Behavioral Health Workforce Buckles, Help Is Years Away

As California’s Behavioral Health Workforce Buckles, Help Is Years Away

If you or someone you know may be experiencing a mental health crisis, contact the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by dialing or texting “988.” REDDING, Calif. 𑁋 This spring, the Good News Rescue Mission, which runs the only emergency homeless shelter in Shasta County, received a game-changing $17.8 million state grant to build a

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Immigrant Kids Detained in ‘Unsafe and Unsanitary’ Sites as Trump Team Seeks To End Protections

Immigrant Kids Detained in ‘Unsafe and Unsanitary’ Sites as Trump Team Seeks To End Protections

A child developed a rash after he was prevented from changing his underwear for four days. A little boy, bored and overcome with despair, began hitting himself in the head. A child with autism and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder was forced to go without his medication, despite his mother’s pleas. “I heard one officer say about us

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Peligran servicios de salud mental en lugares de trabajo por recortes federales

Peligran servicios de salud mental en lugares de trabajo por recortes federales

En Connecticut, a los trabajadores de la construcción del sindicato Local 478 que completan un tratamiento por adicciones se los conecta con un coach que los visita a diario, los acompaña a las reuniones de recuperación y ayuda con el proceso de reincorporación al trabajo durante un año. En Pennsylvania, los médicos que solicitan acreditación

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The Foster Care System Has a Suicide Problem. Federal Cuts Threaten To Slow Fixes.

The Foster Care System Has a Suicide Problem. Federal Cuts Threaten To Slow Fixes.

If you or someone you know may be experiencing a mental health crisis, contact the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by dialing or texting “988.” Elliott Hinkle experienced depression and suicidal thoughts even before entering the foster care system in Casper, Wyoming, at age 15. At the time, Hinkle, who is transgender, struggled with their

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