Beyond the debate around Georgia’s election outcome, one result is a clear victory for health care. Three of four Georgians voted to approve a referendum Nov. 6 that will help nonprofits provide permanent housing to homeless people with mental illness. Referendum B allows a property tax exemption for nonprofit housing of these individuals in residences that…
At the end of the Georgia ballot this year is a referendum that, if approved, would help nonprofits provide permanent housing to homeless people with mental illness. Referendum B would allow a property tax exemption for nonprofit housing of these individuals in residences that get tax credit financing from for-profit business entities. 3Keys is one such…
Georgia was graded “D’’ on ensuring access to mental health and addiction treatment equal to that for physical illnesses, according to a report released Wednesday. The announcement comes on the 10th anniversary of a federal law on benefits signed by President George W. Bush. The Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act requires insurers to cover…
After her daughter’s death last year, Helen Dennard says, “I went over the edge.’’ It followed other deaths in her family in recent years. Dennard, an Atlanta resident, found herself angry and depressed by the time she went to her regular Grady Health System physician for a checkup. “I had really given up on life….
Driven largely by rising medical costs, health insurance premiums are expected to rise next year for many U.S. workers. Not so for Georgia teachers and state employees. Their 2019 premiums, deductibles, copays and co-insurance will remain the same as this year in the State Health Benefit Plan (SHBP), Geogia’s Department of Community Health said Thursday. The…
While Georgia has raised its funding for mental health services, there are still treatment gaps remaining across the state. A new GHN Commentary says more funding of these services can address these mental health needs. And that funding, along with stronger gun control measures, can lower the level of violence here and in the U.S….
While some are adamant in saying that the problem of violence is not guns, it’s mentally ill people, all have failed to put their money where their mouth is on the national level. We are pleased to say that Georgia is an exception. Dr. Derril Gay, retired head of the former state agency overseeing mental health services, said the increase in…
This article is reprinted with permission from Rural Health Quarterly When Laurie* moved to rural western Colorado, she thought she had found a tranquil oasis to rest and die. Then 32, she was sober and living with HIV, but her health was waning and the mid-1990s HIV medications were taking a toll on her body. “I moved…
This article is written by Elly Yu, a WABE reporter, and is published with permission of WABE. A lot of us have probably been to the hospital emergency room: For a broken bone, an asthma attack, the flu. Chances are, it wasn’t the best experience. Long wait times in crowded lobbies. Doctors hustling back and…
The GBI reports that 144 Georgia children and teenagers have committed suicide over the last three years. And nationally, drug overdoses are now killing more people than gun homicides and car crashes combined, and kill hundreds of Georgians each year. Yet despite those problems, coverage of behavioral health care is a lot more restrictive than…