Jacob 1

Sue Jacob

Ms. Gardner

English 10H/Period 6

9 May 2017

Dont Stand Alone: Mental Health Insurance

Untreated mental health and substance use disorders can be debilitating and

life-threatening (Fact Sheet). Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social

well-being. It affects how we think, feel, act and determine how we handle stress, relate to

others, and make choices. Every one in five of the population is affected by a mental illness and

despite the federal and state parity laws, discrimination still exists toward mental health and

substance use conditions (Cohn, Meredith). Citizens question how their tax dollars are being

spent on the mentally ill even though it could substantially improve their quality life; moreso, it

offers them jobs, shelter, and the opportunity at a considerably normal life.

Many argue that every year, an increased amount of tax money solely used to treat the

uninsured goes down the drain. Grady Memorial Hospital spends about ten million dollars

treating the uninsured while statewide, the costs can add up to about 158 million dollars

(William, Misty). Hard earned, misspent dollars--wasted on a population with grown adults

that should be capable of fending for themselves, however, is it truly wasted? Mr. Diaz, a

hopeful man and a recovering opioid addict, expresses This is the best my life has gone in

many, many years (Seelye, Katharine Q). Although many may not be aware of the immensely

positive impact they are able to deliver towards mentally ill patients, financial support given to
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facilities that support these people are essentially given a longer and happier life--which may not

have been something they could have foreseen in their past without covered treatment.

Helping individuals with mental health disorders and supporting mental health through

covering treatment using tax dollars, is a simply humane action. Quoted in Kevin Cullens article

Mental Health Parity a Myth, Cullen claims that the the majority of the population simply

doesn't accept it [mental illness/mental health] and is a largely doubting Thomas Society.

Although many are reluctant to accept the truth of something we can't see or something we

can't measure with traditional metrics, it does not make the greater issue--mental health--simply

vanish. Many are either afraid, sympathize and/or empathize with these patients, making it much

more difficult to accept the entire truth with mental illness; however, that is the reality. A myriad

of individuals in the general population stigmatize those with mental illnesses. An organization

called NAMI, also known as the National Alliance on Mental Illness, emphasizes that stigma

reflects prejudice, dehumanizes people with mental illness, trivializes their legitimate concerns,

and is a significant barrier to effective delivery of mental health services (qtd. NAMI Public

Platform). Pretending these problems do not exist or refusing to support the mentally ill does

not help them in any way; however, covering treatment for the mentally ill could drastically help

the mental health population numbers, while simultaneously breaking the stigma behind mental

health.

Tax money not going to the mentally ill who can not sustain treatment, could save states

millions of tax dollars that could alternatively be used for other items that taxpayers feel are

substantially important than mental health. Nevertheless, those who are treated due to citizens

tax dollars are given the opportunity to better themselves. Furthermore, they are able to enter the
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workforce and slowly but surely give back the tax dollars they used for their own treatment. A

statistic from the USA Today, shows eighty percent of the mentally ill are unemployed, while

about 60% of those with a mental illness, want to work, however, two-thirds can successfully

hold down a job, if they're given appropriate support (Szabo, Liz). By supporting and having

help available to the mentally ill who wish to strive to attain an opportunity to work, or live a

normal life, they could essentially recycle the tax money they used, bring more money than they

used, and lower the percentage of mentally ill on the streets by giving them jobs. Helping the

uninsured and other individuals who can not afford their treatment not only gives them a chance

at a healthy and a productive life, but further decreases the percent of the mentally ill out on the

streets and within a population.

Ultimately, if the mentally ill do not get the treatment they need, this could result in

alarming and increasing percentages of deaths in those who possess mental health disorders.

Individuals with severe mental illness die 25 years earlier on average than the rest of Americans

from untreated diabetes, heart disease and other chronic illnesses (Williams, Misty). There are a

myriad of cases where families are not able to afford treatment for their children or other family

members, depressingly resulting in death--through an extended amount of medical problems and

insufficiencies, worsened cases of mentally ill patients, and suicide caused by despair due to

mental health. After overdosing nineteen times, the troubled father speaking with Baltimore

Sun reveals, William was finally ready to enter a detoxification. Although William sought for

help with his addiction, he was denied treatment in 20 minutes and within two hours feeling

hopeless, he had overdosed in a coffee shop and did not make it (Cohn, Meredith). Evidently,

through Meredith Cohns and Misty Williams articles, without the mandatory treatment within
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the mental health population, these consequences lead to death. As a result of neglect in the

population of the mentally ill, sadly enough, leads to death; however, these dejected

consequences can be avoided by covering treatment for those who are not able to sustain

themselves.

NAMI believes that people with mental illnesses must have the opportunity to be actively

involved and supported in making personal choices related to education, training, employment,

entrepreneurship and business development (qtd. NAMI Public Platform). Covering treatment

may take away funding for other things, but mental health is equally as important as anything

else. Acknowledging treatment and providing financial support towards the uninsured and

towards individuals who cannot afford to cover their own treatment give patients a much more

productive and meaningful life, increases survival rates, and lowers morbidity rates. The action

of supporting those with a mental illness is greater than the controversial issue of money. Money

is not something that should define a human being, limit one from achieving great opportunities,

or even prevent an individual from overcoming obstacles. Supporting those with a mental illness

is about doing something good and giving back because of the thought that you could have

possibly saved a life or drastically changed one for the better. As Meredith Cohn shared

Williams valuable life and touching story, the tragedy could have been prevented if he had been

offered help when he was in desperate need of it and also desperately wanted it. More tragedies

like Williams can be prevented with your help. So break the stigma behind mental illness, and

help save a life.

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Works Cited

"Fact Sheet: Federal Parity Task Force Takes Steps to Strengthen.." WHITE HOUSE PRESS

RELEASE, 27 Oct, 2016, SIRS Government Reporter, https://sks.sirs.com.

NAMI Public Platform . Sept. 2014.

https://www.nami.org/NAMI/media/NAMI-Media/downloads/Public-Policy-Platform_9-

22-14.pdf

Cohn, Meredith. "Inequity Persists in Health Coverage." Baltimore Sun, 05 Apr, 2015, pp. C.1,

SIRS Issues Researcher, https://sks.sirs.com.

Cullen, Kevin. "Mental Health Parity a Myth." Boston Globe, 28 Mar, 2017, SIRS Issues

Researcher, https://sks.sirs.com.

Szabo, Liz. 'Bleak picture' for mentally ill: 80% are jobless. USA Today, Gannett Satellite

Information Network, 10 July 2014,

www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/07/10/high-unemployment-mentally-ill/1218

6049/.

Seelye, Katharine Q., and Abby Goodnough. "Without Health Law, Addicts could have the most

to Lose." New York Times, 11 Feb, 2017, pp. A.1, SIRS Issues Researcher,

https://sks.sirs.com.

Williams, Misty. "The Invisible Epidemic: Mentally Ill Poor Cost Taxpayers." Atlanta

Journal-Constitution, 24 Sep, 2015, pp. A.1, SIRS Issues Researcher, https://sks.sirs.com.

Williams, Misty. "The Invisible Epidemic: Poor and Mentally Ill in Georgia." Atlanta

Journal-Constitution, 20 Sep, 2015, pp. A.1, SIRS Issues Researcher, https://sks.sirs.com.