Mental health access to care in Missouri

Mental illnesses are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States, affecting, in some estimates, up to one in four adults or 57.7 million people. Severe psychiatric disorders, like schizophrenia, bipolar and major depression occur in one in seventeen Americans. Moreover, serious mental illnesses affect children at rates approaching 10%. Addictive disorders co-occurring with other mental illnesses affect over five million adults. The direct cost of these illnesses is high, totaling 16 billion dollars per year; dwarfed by the indirect costs of loss productivity which is four times as much. Individuals diagnosed with mental disorders have significantly higher rates of school dropout, homelessness, incarceration, and suicide. Embedded in these statistics is a concerning fact; access to care for those with psychiatric disorders is poor, with only one-third of adults and half the children diagnosed receiving care in any given year. These numbers are worse if the person is a racial or ethnic minority. This paper hopes to highlight the state of mental health treatment first in the United States and then in our state of Missouri. The news is sobering but there are pockets of good news as well.