Sunday, February 28, 2010

The Serious Costs of Mental Health

What perfect timing in this political environment to discuss the costs that metal health imposes on our nation. With the health reform bill the hot topic of discussion in Washington it is imperative that elected officials give serious consideration to reforming the mental health system. Looking back on previous legislation and by simply looking around hospitals it is easy to see that the mental health department is one of the first to get cuts in the budget. I have attached an article that gives statistics on how much mental health costs burden the American economy. The author Micheal Hogan discusses how most of the mental health costs are 'indirect costs' rather than 'direct costs'. Direct costs would be for example hospitals visits while indirect costs are the costs of an individual not being able to contribute to the workforce.

This report is very helpful for forming public policy in regards to mental health because it gives statistics to back up how mental health diseases are effecting the country. It is important for the economy to pass meaningful legislation that would improve conditions for mental health patients.

Below is a link to the journal article by Hogan:

No comments:

Post a Comment