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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (Sept. 7, 2016)
September 7, 2016 The Skanner Page 9 News AP PHOTO/ANDREW HARNIK Hillary Clinton Rolls Out Mental Health Plan Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton takes a question from a member of the media on board her campaign plane as she travels to Tampa International Airport in Tampa, Sept. 6. Last week Clinton announced a plan to increase access to mental health treatment. By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Contributor H illary Clinton said she’s alarmed by the statistics. Approximately one in ive adults in the United States — or 43.8 million Americans — experience mental illness in a given year. About 18 percent of adults in the country experienced an anxiety disorder such as posttraumatic stress disorder, obsessive-com- pulsive disorder and speciic pho- bias. Also, one in every four college students experiences a mental illness. Statistics like these must and will be met head on if Clinton is elected president, she promised during a media call last week to unveil her plan to better incorpo- rate mental health services into general health care settings. Clinton said this is her way of increasing access to treatment. The former First Lady and Sec- retary of State told reporters that among the irst order of business she’d undertake in the Oval Oice is to host a White House confer- ence on mental health. Steps outlined by Clinton in- clude retooling reimbursement systems in Medicare and Medic- aid and promoting early diagno- sis and intervention, including a national suicide prevention initiative and randomized audits of insurance companies to make it more diicult to conceal when mental health care services are denied. “Addiction, homelessness and a broken criminal justice system” are byproducts of a poor mental health system, Clinton said. Fur- “ and local governments were fully funded and capable of handling mental health issues. When there’s been cooperation, there has been success, she noted. “I’ve heard stories of encour- agement, of people who have been able to get help,” Clinton said. “We have to make clear that mental health is not a personal failing but that right now our country is failing. From launch- ing a suicide prevention initia- tive to reforming criminal jus- tice so that low-level ofenders wind up in treatment and not in jail; we need to start focusing on the whole person. Focus on early detection and treatment and to make sure that mental health is covered by insurance,” she said. Clinton also cited the need to expand housing and job opportu- nities as part of the overall reme- dy for the nation’s mental health crisis. “We have to expand providers and make sure they have the sup- port and that they deserve. We will make mental health a nation- al priority if I am elected presi- dent,” she said. “We have got to make sure that every community in the country have the informa- tion and the resources that they ‘The human cost is even worse with the suicide levels at the highest in years. People are dying from conditions that go undetected and untreated, too oten’ ther, Americans are losing near- ly $200 billion each year due to a lack of care, understanding and tolerance, she said. “The human cost is even worse with the suicide levels at the high- est in years. People are dying from conditions that go undetect- ed and untreated, too oten,” Clin- ton said. “I have heard the heartbreaking stories for years about these in- credible challenges. During the campaign, it seems like the lood gates have opened,” she said. Clinton, who leads Republican Presidential nominee Donald Trump by double digits in most national polls, said if she were elected she’d see to it that state —Hillary Clinton need.” Mental health has been a high- light of the Clinton campaign, particularly ater she met last year with individuals at Town Hall forums who said their fami- lies were struggling with mental health and other illnesses. Clinton had earlier announced an initiative to speed up the process for a cure for Alzhei- mer’s disease, which on Monday claimed the life of actor Gene Wilder. Clinton’s proposal that she rolled out during the call with re- porters also called for improving See HEALTH on page 11 Is it Me — or is My Dog OCD? By Dr. Jasmine Shanelle Streeter, Veterinarian For The Skanner News I once had a coworker, whose dog was OCD. He’d always chase his tail and spin and bark in- cessantly. My coworker would laugh and nod and brush it of with glee. But compulsive disor- der in dogs is real -- let’s see if you agree. Have you ever known a dog or two that displayed abnormal gait? Did he ever spin or chase his tail or pace and pace and pace? Maybe he was more the oral type who loved to lick and chew, Or suck his paws or bite his rump or always eat his poo – eww! Well we can’t forget the “special” ones who al- ways seem quite high. That hallucinate or ix a stare or catch imagi- nary lies. The cause of this is still unclear but it happens in the brain. Sometimes it’s trig- gered by frustration, sometimes no one’s to blame. There are a couple breeds to watch who are predisposed for thee. Pit bulls and German Shepherds spin or sim- ply stop and freeze. It’s said Great Danes and Shorthaired Point- ers love to run a fence. And Dobermans can act quite childish suck- ing blankets for defense. The normal time when signs appear is right at Dr. Jasmine and her dog Sheba puberty ( sixmonths). It seems to target males no doubt with greater frequency. Not every dog that shows these traits should see a vet like me. If it’s not harmful to their health, you might well let them be. Of course you have to factor in your mental sanity. But if you’re cool Snap- chat a vid or post a pic to IG. Go watch your Gucci wilding out on imagi- nary rain. Might mean he’s per- fect for a life in Port- land’s humid terrain. But if this madness you can’t bear is becoming just a pain. Well take him in to a behavior vet -- I’m sure they’d love to learn his name. Do you have a pet topic you’d like to learn more about? I’d love to hear from you! Write me at drjasmine@theskanner. com Make The Skanner part of your daily routine for a better day today and tomorrow. Get a quick update or enjoy an in-depth read on your desktop. Grab the headlines from your mobile device. Tap to view events and announcements. Don’t miss anything! Page through the latest print edition online.
