Musings: Funding minds, young and old

As a behavioral therapy coach working with young kids, teens and young adults navigating anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder, I have observed how schools lack necessary resources to fully support our youth.

National data shows an increase in the number of students experiencing a mental health diagnosis. The lack of mental health resources leads to a decrease in taking preventive measures. This leads to low support for students, only helping when behaviors become a problem in the school environment.

A House bill, the Expanding Access to Mental Health Services in Schools Act, poses a solution. This act would supply schools with funds necessary to increase staffing for mental health providers in high-need school districts.

Passing this bill would lead to an increase in support for all students. It is important to acknowledge that students spend most of their days in school. The bill should be co-sponsored by all of Long Island’s members of Congress.

— Julia Pascucci, Center Moriches

Two House bills, the Alzheimer’s Screening and Prevention Act (ASAP) and Accelerating Access to Dementia and Alzheimer’s Provider Training Act (AADAPT), aim to help fight against Alzheimer’s. ASAP will create a pathway for Medicare coverage of blood-based Alzheimer’s screening tests while AADAPT will expand training so physicians can better diagnose and treat it.

Now, supporters seek a sustained federal investment in dementia infrastructure, which will accelerate innovation, leading to new and better treatments and prevention.

By supporting an additional $187 million for Alzheimer’s and dementia research activities at the National Institutes of Health and $41.5 million for implementation of the BOLD Infrastructure for Alzheimer’s Act at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Congress can ensure that progress.

— Ira Kleiner, Middle Island