Week of Nov. 21–25, 2022

General Articles

• Missouri ranks in the bottom 10 in an annual ranking by the nonprofit Mental Health America. The organization looks at residents’ access to mental health services and overall adult mental health in a state. The lower-ranked states are ones in which adults have a higher prevalence of mental illness and lower rates of access to care. Another recent study ranked Missouri 49th  among states with the best mental health care. Read more here.
• As the days grow colder and daylight becomes more scarce, some Americans are oversleeping, overeating, experiencing weight gain and social withdrawal or hibernating. The symptoms are part of a condition called seasonal affective disorder
• Video games are an undeniably great way to unwind, escape reality, and have some fun — but they’re also a double-edged sword. Under certain circumstances, playing video games can easily morph from a fun and lighthearted activity to a problematic behavior that leads to irritability, addiction, and social isolation. So what’s the best way to navigate this slippery slope? Here are a few tips and tidbits that will help you make sure that gaming is beneficial to your mental, emotional, and social well-being.
• While mental health symptoms are common in airline pilots, getting help can affect their ability to work in a big way. Airline pilots are required to meet certain medical standards in order to maintain an active flying status, and disclosing a new symptom or condition to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) puts them at risk of losing, usually temporarily, their ability to work and fly. This is particularly true for mental health symptoms. Read more here.

Youth Mental Health

• Experts said that using ARPA funds is just one way for states to support children’s behavioral health during what health professionals have called “a national emergency in child and adolescent mental health,” which was worsened by the pandemic. In an effort led by the American Academy of Pediatrics, multiple organizations wrote to the Biden administration in October, urging it to declare a federal national emergency over children’s mental health. Read more here.

Elder Care

• Aging baby boomers in the U.S. are living longer and have better financial safety nets than previous generations. They're also more likely to be divorced, live far away from their children and be living with debt and a chronic condition. Why it matters: The U.S. is not well-equipped to handle the largest generation of elderly adults in human history, experts say. That's because of an already strained long-term care industry, fewer caregivers to assist with their needs and a world that just isn't designed for them. Read more here.
• A financial arms race is forming in senior care as private capital pours into the reshaping of elder care. Why it matters: The perceived dangers of private equity entering senior care have largely focused on nursing homes, but the truth is, the dollars are flowing elsewhere. "Most of the innovation and new business models that have been developed have been about trying to keep people out of long-term-care facilities," said Devin O'Reilly, managing director at Bain Capital. The capital is following that innovation. Read more here.
• Long-term care will become an increasingly elusive need for aging baby boomers in the next decade, forcing some to spend down their assets in order to qualify for Medicaid. Why it matters: The population of middle-class seniors in America will increase 89% to 16 million by 2033, according to data from NORC at the University of Chicago. Most will have chronic conditions and mobility difficulties, and nearly 75% won't be able to afford assisted living without selling their homes, the NORC data shows. Read more here.

Workforce Issues

• Burnout among American physicians is at an all-time high, according to a national study published in September by the Mayo Clinic. America's doctors are struggling to thrive in a broken health care system that has become more and more defined by red tape and bureaucracy. Outsized administrative burdens are imposed by both government and private insurance companies alike while patient care takes a back seat. Both physicians and patients are harmed by this status quo as burnout leads to lower qualities of care. Read more here.

The Opioid Crisis

• With more than 200 Americans still dying of drug overdoses each day, states are beginning the high-stakes task of deciding how to spend billions of dollars in settlement funds from opioid manufacturers and distributors. Their decisions will have real-world implications for families and communities across the country that have borne the brunt of the opioid crisis. Read more here.

Social Determinants

• Palakshappa’s clinic team now asks two simple questions of every patient to ascertain whether they’ll run out of food in a given month. But there are some critical questions they don’t ask: Do you drink your tap water? Is it potable and ample? Can you cook food with it, and use it to mix infant formula and cereal? Such questions could uncover some of the millions of Americans who are water insecure—a circumstance directly connected to food insecurity. Read more here.

Federal and State Policy

• Enrollment in Affordable Care Act marketplaces is on pace to set a new record, Health Secretary Xavier Becerra told Axios on Tuesday, with subsidies that Congress renewed through 2025 softening the blow of premium increases. Why it matters: Consumers are flocking to ACA plans as employers and insurers grapple with higher premiums and higher out-of-pocket costs. Read more here.