Patti's Blog - Advocate for Elders, People with Disabilities and Their Families

Affordable Care Act Expands Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Benefits and Federal Parity Protections for 62 Million Americans

Excerpt from: HHS.gov (click for full article)

 

The Affordable Care Act builds on the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 to extend federal parity protections to 62 million Americans. The parity law aims to ensure that when coverage for mental health and substance use conditions is provided, it is generally comparable to coverage for medical and surgical care. The Affordable Care Act builds on the parity law by requiring coverage of mental health and substance use disorder benefits for millions of Americans in the individual and small group markets who currently lack these benefits, and expanding parity requirements to apply to millions of Americans whose coverage did not previously comply with those requirements.

Medical Bills Bankrupt Families of Mentally Ill Children

Excerpt from: ABC News (click for full article)

 

An estimated 11 percent of children in the United States are affected by mental health and addiction disorders with significant costs, according to the study, and mental health disorders are the primary cause of hospital admissions for early teens.

About half of all lifetime cases of mental illness begin by the age of 14, and decades often lapse before these people get treatment, according to research supported by the NIMH. By the time they reach adulthood, their disorders are more severe and not as easy to treat, leading to the development of co-occurring conditions, research finds.

The multi-university study looked at the heath care policy for federal employees, which is comprehensive and generous. "We should all have the kind of insurance that members of Congress have," said Barry.

"Historically, there has been inpatient day and outpatient visit limits for services," she said. "For example, you only get 25 outpatient visits. After that, families pay everything themselves. That was the old way of doing things. Now, if those limits don't exist for medical care, they shouldn't exist for mental health care."

 

Promoting long-term recovery

Excerpt from: HHS.gov (click for full article)

 

A 10-year study indicates that Alcoholics Anonymous participants who help others in AA are more likely to stay sober long term.  Researchers compared AA meeting attendance, stepwork – or working through the 12-step program, and AA-related helping, to drinking behaviors and consideration of others.  Sharing experiences with other alcoholics was associated with greater recovery outcomes.

Dr. Maria Pagano is at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in Cleveland.

“AA-related helping helps the helper stay sober over the long haul and facilitates participation in other core activities like meeting attendance and stepwork.”

The study in the journal Substance Abuse was supported by the National Institutes of Health.

Painkiller Paradox: Feds Struggle To Control Drugs That Help And Harm

Excerpt from: NPR (click for full article)

 

Israel, who lives in Buffalo, N.Y., is now on a mission to prevent more people from dying from their addiction to prescription painkillers. And he's far from alone.

These drugs have been a godsend for millions of people in pain. But they are narcotics, which means they can make people high. As a result, they are abused by millions of people. And many patients who take them for pain become dependent.

"What we're seeing, increasingly, over the last few years has been widespread abuse, and the abuse just keeps increasing," says Joseph Rannazzisi of the Drug Enforcement Administration. "It's a huge problem. And I think we're at epidemic proportions right now."

Overdoses have been rising rapidly, now killing more than 15,000 Americans every year.

"It's not a white or black or Hispanic issue. It's not a male or female issue. It's everyone," Rannazzisi says. "We see kids as young as 12 years old, elderly patients."

Drug and Alcohol Addiction, Costs and Lack of Care

Excerpt from: Health Reform Watch (click for full article)

Interesting article in the Washington Post/ Kaiser Health News I stumbled across in our sidebar; it discusses both the cost of addiction, with emphasis given to drugs and alcohol, and the absolute dearth of doctors trained in addiction medicine.

The article states that

“Of the 985,375 practicing physicians in the United States, only about 1,200 are trained in addiction medicine….”

And notes that

A recent comprehensive report by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University found that most doctors fail to identify or diagnose substance abuse ‘or know what to do with patients who present with treatable symptoms.’