Week of November 10–14, 2025

General Mental Health

• On Nov. 3, North Carolina officials announced a $9.5 million pilot program to provide intensive support to people with serious mental illnesses — such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and chronic post-traumatic stress disorder — as they reenter the community after incarceration. The goal: to reduce repeat encounters with the justice system and guide people to the help they need. Read more here.

The Opioid Crisis

• A federal bankruptcy court judge said he will approve OxyContin-maker Purdue Pharma’s latest deal to settle thousands of lawsuits over the toll of opioids that includes some money for thousands of victims of the epidemic. The deal overseen by U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Sean Lane would require members of the Sackler family, who own the company, to contribute up to $7 billion over 15 years. The new agreement replaces one the U.S. Supreme Court rejected last year, finding it would have improperly protected members of the family against future lawsuits. The judge said he would explain his decision in a hearing. Read more here.

Research

• In this AI-enhanced response-adaptive randomized clinical trial among college students, physical activity and mindfulness were most effective for severe distress, while physical activity and sleep hygiene were most effective for mild distress. These findings can guide personalized mental health interventions for college students. This trial improved efficiency by minimizing control group allocation but had reduced power to detect significant group differences. Read more here.
• In this cohort study of 82, 418 mother-child pairs, maternal psychological distress at one year postpartum had an estimated higher risk of neurodevelopmental delay in toddlers than psychological distress during pregnancy. These findings suggest the importance of maintaining maternal mental health from pregnancy through one year postpartum. Read more here.

Government Shutdown

• President Donald Trump signed a government funding bill, ending a record 43-day shutdown that caused financial stress for federal workers who went without paychecks, stranded scores of travelers at airports, and generated long lines at some food banks. The shutdown magnified partisan divisions in Washington as Trump took unprecedented unilateral actions — including canceling projects and trying to fire federal workers — to pressure Democrats into relenting on their demands. Read more here.
• Republicans are putting their own spin on subsidizing Americans’ health care: Route money away from insurers and put cash directly in consumers’ hands to give them more choice over their coverage. Economists and policy experts suspect President Donald Trump and GOP lawmakers are presenting this alternative to extending the enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies because they want to undermine or even replace Obamacare — something the party has repeatedly failed to do in the past. Read more here.
• House Democratic leaders introduced a discharge petition designed to force consideration of legislation to extend expiring Obamacare subsidies for another three years. Behind House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), the Democrats are hoping to entice a handful of moderate Republicans to endorse the petition, which will require 218 signatures to force a floor vote on the legislation over the objections of Republican leaders. Read more here.