EDUCATION AND MENTAL HEALTH

MENTAL ILLNESS AFFECTS A CHILD’S ABILITY TO LEARN

Background
Mental illness is an often severe and disabling medical condition that can nearly always be effectively treated. An estimated 20 percent of the population has some sort of serious mental illness during their lifetime – that’s one in 5 Californians. Individuals with mental illness are also both the largest and fastest growing group of people with disabilities receiving Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability Income (SSDI) disability payments. According to the President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health, an estimated $25 billion is spent annually for these disability payments. There are many forms of mental illness, which like almost any illness, vary in severity. Some of the most common forms of mental illness include schizophrenia, manic depressive/bi-polar disorder, major depression, anxiety disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder.

• Untreated mental illness affects a child’s ability to learn. Less than 25 percent of children with emotional or behavioral disorders graduate from high school.
• California’s Little Hoover Commission has found between 40 and 90 percent of children in the juvenile justice system have one or more mental disorders and that some of these children end up behind bars because key mental health services are not available.
• Suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death in 15-24 year-olds. U.S. Surgeon General, 2000.
• Comprehensive mental health treatment lowers special education loads on schools, reduces teacher burnout and improves test scores.
• In some counties, school is often the only place many children can access public mental health services.

Next Steps
Sustained funding for mental health treatment in California is critical because of the direct impact mental illness has on all aspects of society – education, homelessness, law enforcement and overall health costs. Reductions in available resources for comprehensive mental health treatment will ultimately result in additional costs transferred to another segment of our community. Funding of mental health services should remain a priority for California because it is clear the investment saves both money and lives.

For questions or additional information call Kami Lloyd at 916-658-0144

3/28/03

1127 – 11 th Street, Suite 925, Sacramento, CA 95814
Telephone: 916-557-1167 Fax: 916-447-2350 Email: mhac@cwo.com