How does a country lose sight of 60 million people? One in five Americans has a mental illness at any given time, yet as a society we do not see them. They suffer discrimination, yet as a society we don't acknowledge it.
Access to mental health care is a civil right. Under federal law, insurers must cover mental health care on the same basis as physical illnesses, but in practice too many sufferers don't have access to the same care as those with physical ills. A National Alliance on Mental Illness survey found respondents were less likely to find doctors or prescribers who accepted their insurance and more likely to be forced to spend extra out of pocket to receive coverage.
Mental health issues may strike anyone. But we know that the poor, the black and the brown are more vulnerable. Tragically, the ravages of poverty fall on our children's psyches. Approximately nine out of 10 American children suffering from the most common mental disorders live in poverty. A young person who has lived through poverty, neglect or violence, is twice as likely to experience the onset of a mental health disorder as a young person who hasn't had those experiences.
Racism also exacts a terrible psychic toll. A review of almost studies published over 30 years found that those who faced racism suffered, "poorer mental health, including depression, anxiety, psychological stress and various other outcomes.
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Yet the same people who most need support are the least likely to get it. African Americans, Asians, and Latinos are less likely than white New Yorkers to receive counseling or medication. African-Americans are less likely than whites to be diagnosed even with the same symptoms and half as likely to receive mental healthcare in their own neighborhoods. Nationally, African-Americans are 20 percent more likely to have serious mental health disorders than whites, but 40 percent less likely to receive care.
