EDITORIAL: Youth in crisis
Salem NewsNov 15, 2021
Nov. 15—This is a crisis. It is not how it's always been. It is not kids being kids. It's not media hype or ARPA money grabs. It is a crisis.
Children are suffering. Their access to mental health resources is glaringly lacking. And they're traveling in droves to emergency rooms that serve as holding tanks where they wait, often for weeks, without proper mental health care, to gain access to a bed in a psychiatric facility.
Sometimes, the stay in the mental health ward is far shorter than the ER visit, as administrators try to move children along to make room for another, and insurance companies cut off benefits after just days or a couple of weeks.
Late last month the
"We are caring for young people with soaring rates of depression, anxiety, trauma, loneliness and suicidality that will have lasting impacts on them, their families, their communities, and all of our futures," the group representing more than 77,000 physicians and 200 children's hospitals declared.
According to data from the
Let that sink in: 5-year-olds.
On
The legislation is not specific to young people, but most certainly would help put some fingers in the dike to quell the flood of need.
Under the proposal, the window of time for approval of new clinicians would be compressed, allowing them to practice more quickly. Additionally, financing same-day care would become a requirement.
Lawmakers identified these two areas as major financial barriers for those seeking services. And finances aside, when a child expresses suicidal ideation or makes an attempt, there is no time to wait. But a long stay in an emergency room won't go far to solve the problem.
Another key element of the
"The cornerstone of this legislation is that mental health is just as important as a person's physical health," Statehouse reporter
Coupled with other efforts moving through the Legislature, this proposal has the potential to go a long way toward providing relief for afflicted young people.
Two weeks ago, Wade wrote, the House approved a plan to spend
This money would mean more available professionals for both in- and outpatient programs. It would mean more beds. In fact, in the
Interestingly, the
What a shame. Let's not drop the ball again.
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