Articles, Leading Stories

August 18th, 2017

Support increasing for children who witness violence

By Janine Weisman

Rhode Island is now the second state in New England after Connecticut to cover expenses for psychiatric care and mental health counseling for children who witness homicides or...

August 18th, 2017

Law would shift ‘medically necessary’ determinations to clinicians

By Phyllis Hanlon

Efforts to increase coverage for behavioral health services have been an on-going struggle for patients, families and advocates in recent years. Some politicians have stepped...

August 18th, 2017

Ban proposed on conversion therapy

By Phyllis Hanlon

In June, the Massachusetts Joint Committee on Children, Families and Persons with Disabilities held a hearing to consider legislation (S.62/H.1190) that would ban conversion...

August 18th, 2017

UMaine athletes to get mental health resources

By Pamela Berard

The University of Maine (UMaine) is adding a mental health program to its athletic department.
UMaine is receiving $640,000 in a one-time distribution from the NCAA,...

August 18th, 2017

Study looks at connection between mental illness, opioid addiction

By Catherine Robertson Souter

As the country reels under the spread of opioid addiction and overdosing, a recent study conducted by Dartmouth-Hitchcock and the University of Michigan has brought a new focus...

August 18th, 2017

Vermont to compensate for first responders’ mental health issues

By Catherine Robertson Souter

Although one of the smallest states, especially by population, Vermont has taken the lead in mental health public policy. With a multi-partisan bill that was signed into law by...

August 18th, 2017

Clark team committed to address disparity issues

By Catherine Robertson Souter

For minorities and the poor in this country, the rates of access to and use of mental health care services remain far lower than those of majority whites.

At Clark...

July 1st, 2017

Creativity: The path to identity

By Phyllis Hanlon

Museums house innumerable works from masters such as Renoir, Monet, Rodin and Jackson Pollock. But creativity doesn’t stop there. The family refrigerator might feature the...

July 1st, 2017

Dept. of Public Health approves bed closure

By Susan Gonsalves

The Department of Public Health conditionally approved UMass Memorial Medical Center’s plan to eliminate 13 of 27 inpatient psychiatry beds as part of a $30 million...

July 1st, 2017

New Hampshire legislation expands mental health care

By Phyllis Hanlon

On May 11, the New Hampshire Senate unanimously passed an amendment to House Bill (HB) 400, which is intended to significantly improve access to beds for psychiatric patients...