General Mental Health Issues
- Slow tapering of antidepressants with psychological support was as effective as antidepressant continuation in preventing relapse among patients with remitted depression, a systematic review and network meta-analysis of randomized trials suggested. Read more here.
Youth Mental Health
- School reopening was associated with a 1.2%-point drop in monthly prevalence of mental health diagnoses (95% CI: -1.59, -0.74) and a 10.6% (95%CI: -13.4%, -7.8%) drop in related healthcare spending. The mental health conditions that saw the largest differential between in-person and remote school districts were anxiety and depression. Effects were strongest among girls. Read more here.
Suicide Prevention
- The U.S. suicide rate dropped slightly last year from some of the highest levels ever reported, preliminary data suggests. Experts say it’s hard to know exactly why, or whether the decline will continue. A little over 48,800 suicide deaths were reported in 2024, according to provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, roughly 500 fewer than the year before. Read more here.
The Opioid Crisis
- A Florida judge declared a mistrial in a lawsuit that accused Walmart, CVS, and Walgreens of flooding the state with opioids and raising costs for local hospitals. The trial began in Broward County Circuit Court in September, and jurors deliberated for 14 days before telling the judge they could not reach a unanimous verdict. Read more here.
- West Virginia’s attorney general has filed a lawsuit against one of the nation’s largest pharmacy benefit managers for its role in the state’s opioid crisis. According to Attorney General JB McCuskey, the suit alleges United Healthcare, Optum, and its affiliates oversupplied West Virginia with opioids starting in 2010. Read more here.
- The free counseling program is a rare example of opioid money directly reaching people in Louisiana who need help. Three years into the process of paying out funds from landmark settlements reached between states and major opioid producers and distributors, it’s hard to see what Louisiana has done to combat addiction with the roughly $100 million disbursed across the state. Read more here.
Research
- The findings of this cross-sectional study indicate that telehealth has become a common means of receiving outpatient mental health care in the U.S., especially for resourced patients with less serious psychological distress who receive psychotherapy from mental health specialists. Read more here.
- In this cohort study of adolescent depression trajectories throughout COVID-19, girls, teens in later puberty, and those with experiences of peer bullying, cyberbullying, and greater family conflict before the pandemic were more susceptible to developing depressive symptoms that persisted after the pandemic, whereas prepandemic parental monitoring and problem-solving skills were identified as prospective modifiable resilience factors. Read more here.
Health Insurance Subsidies
- The fierce fight over health care costs hits a crucial juncture this week, with a series of major developments that could make or break the future of enhanced ObamaCare subsidies. For months, GOP leaders have been squeezed between centrist Republicans clamoring to extend the Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits, which expire at year’s end, and more conservative lawmakers fighting to see them lapse. Democrats, from the sidelines, have fueled the clash by demanding a “clean” extension to prevent premiums from skyrocketing for millions of Americans in January. Read more here.
- The number of Americans signing up for Affordable Care Act health insurance for 2026 is moderately higher than it was at a similar time last year, initial new federal data shows, even as subsidies set to expire at the end of 2025 will make the coverage more expensive for many. Read more here.
- The U.S. Senate rejected competing proposals by Republicans and Democrats to address a looming healthcare crisis, leaving some 24 million Americans vulnerable to significantly higher insurance premiums beginning on January 1 when a federal subsidy expires. Barring any late breakthroughs, Congress will begin an end-of-year holiday recess and not return until January 5, after new premiums are locked in for those who had relied on the Affordable Care Act enhanced subsidy. Read more here.
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