(9-18-17)  Is the writer and director who brought us the groundbreaking television show GLEE about to produce two seasons of a show for Netflix that will stigmatize Americans with mental illnesses and demonize those who help them?

That appears to be the case based on a news release sent to me by Laura Pogliano, an advocate who has written about her own son’s death.

Director  “Ryan Murphy apparently loves spooky-ass mental institutions,” the story declares as an explanation for why Murphy is bringing back Nurse Ratched from One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest. Titled Ratched, the series will “follow the Big Nurse’s murderous progression through the mental health care system” as she evolves from “nurse to full-fledged monster.”

What that means is a television series that will portray nurses and doctors in psychiatric facilities as being cold-blooded sociopaths eager to brutalize and terrorize patients, many of whom aren’t really sick.

Surely, Mr. Murphy, who has announced publicly that he is gay, knows how harmful stereotypes can be, especially ones perpetuated by Hollywood.

Certainly, Mr. Murphy, who has been justifiably praised for launching a social justice program aimed at bettering the lives of minorities, must be aware of how many of the most dehumanized and ridiculed members of our society are those with mental illnesses and substance disorders who can’t get help because medical professionals either don’t want to work with them or can’t earn enough from insurance companies  to practice their trade.

That being the case, perhaps Mr. Murphy can explain how his moral sensibilities and social conscience fit with a television series that will portray psychiatric facilities and those who work in them so negatively.

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(9-4-17) Health and Human Services Secretary Thomas Price called serious mental illness a “silent epidemic” that touches nearly all Americans. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson agreed. But where were their peers when the Interdepartmental Serious Mental Illness Coordinating Committee (ISMICC), created by Congress, held its first meeting last week?

The 21st Century Cures Act stated that these top federal officials would be members of the committee.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions.

Secretary of Veterans Affairs David J. Shulkin.

Secretary of Defense James Mattis.

Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos.

Secretary of Labor R. Alexander Acosta.

Commissioner of Social Security Nancy A. Berryhill.

I know I am nitpicking. All of these leaders work grueling hours and simply can’t be everywhere the public would like them to be. Plus, they sent senior officials from their agencies to represent them, many of them mental health experts.

But the Trump Administration missed a opportunity by not having its elite leadership team appear at the inaugural meeting, even if it were only long enough for a photo. (See photo at end of this blog showing those who did attend.) Each agency also should have issued a press release on the day of the meeting issued by its top executive addressing how their agency is working on improving mental health services and is reducing stigma within its own ranks.

Consider the powerful, positive message their appearances would have sent to the public and to the federal employees who work in their agencies.

Last week, I posted Secretary Price’s impressive opening statement and in this blog, I will share Dr. Elinore McCance-Katz’s important remarks to the committee.

But first a personal observation. When Secretary Price arrived at the meeting, he spoke to everyone in the room, asked their names, and shook their hands. Unfortunately, Secretary Ben Carson arrived at the last minute and left immediately after he spoke so he was unable to greet everyone.

When I worked at The Washington Post, I spent several weeks traveling with Archbishop Desmond Tutu. He made a point of introducing himself to every doorman, every food server, and the housekeeping staff when we traveled, at times, he did this before greeting dignitaries. I never forgot the visual statement it made: you are important regardless of whether you are the head of a great university or a janitor. You matter.

You might not agree with Secretary Price’s politics, but he showed tremendous class when he arrived at the meeting and took time to introduce himself and shake hands.

As for the others, they missed an important moment when they could have done tremendous good simply by showing up for a picture.

Remarks by Assistant Secretary Dr. Eleanor McCance-Katz

Thank you Secretary Price.

• In my role as Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use, I am pleased to pledge the support of SAMHSA to the Secretary’s priority issue related to Serious Mental Illness. As many of you know, SAMHSA is the agency within HHS that is charged with leading the efforts to address behavioral health issues, such as SMI and SED in our country and I look forward to the work of this committee in helping SAMHSA to address this mission.

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(8-29-17) Elyn Saks’ thought provoking article in Politico about forced treatment (that I posted yesterday) sparked a lively discussion on my Facebook page. This never ending debate about civil rights comes before the first meeting this Thursday of a federal mental health advisory committee. One of the quickest to argue with Dr. Saks was D. J. Jaffe, who wasn’t appointed to the Interdepartmental Serious Mental Illness Coordinating Committee, but was a key proponent in helping Rep. Tim Murphy (R. Pa.) get his Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act, signed into law. It was that act which created the new advisory committee. Feel free to join the discussion on my facebook page.

Heal Thyself?

A federal panel on serious mental illness gets bad advice.

 By D. J. Jaffe, first posted in City Journal. 

In a recent op-ed in Politico, law professor Elyn Saks argued for “expand[ing] the definition of competence” of seriously mentally ill people so more can refuse to consent to treatment. “Instead of designing new ways to force medication on patients,” she writes, “we need to put our efforts into finding new ways to help people want treatment so we don’t have to use force.” Those are not mutually exclusive choices. Both are needed. This proposal—to make it harder to designate incompetence—is dangerous both to society and to the mentally ill themselves.

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Rep. Timothy F. Murphy (R-Pa.), left, speaks with Richard LaRush in LaRush’s Step Up on Second apartment. (Christian K. Lee / Los Angeles Times)

(8-14-17) I am thrilled the Los Angeles Times used Rep. Tim Murphy’s recent visit to Santa Monica’s Step Up on Second housing project in California as a vehicle to answer questions about mental illness and homelessness.

After having worked tirelessly for nearly five years to shepherd his mental health reform bill through Congress and get it signed into law last year, you might believe the Pennsylvania Republican would move on to other issues. Yet, he continues to focus on serious mental illnesses and addiction. As the only practicing psychologist in Congress, he is in a unique position to understand the importance of supportive housing in helping people recover. His visit was a reassuring testament of how committed he is to fixing our failing mental health care system.

I was especially happy that he toured the Step Up on Second project because the Corporation for Supportive Housing, a national nonprofit that helps communities finance and build affordable housing, is one of its backers. I serve on the CSH board. In fact, it is the only board that I serve on. That’s because CSH has demonstrated that people with mental illnesses and substance abuse, who are facing homelessness, can thrive with the right combination of stable, permanent housing and meaningful case management and treatment services.

Such a holistic approach sustains the dignity of the individual and benefits the entire community, delivering lower costs and improved quality of life.

The Los Angeles Times used Rep. Murphy’s visit to publish a Question and Answer feature that separates facts from fiction when it comes to homelessness.

Mental illness and homelessness are connected. But not how you might think

By Gale Holland   The Los Angeles Times  Contact Reporter

Even as Los Angeles starts a $1.2-billion homeless housing construction program, residents from Temple City to Venice are fighting to keep homeless projects out of their neighborhoods.

But since 1995, chronically homeless mentally ill people — a widely shunned subgroup — have been living in Santa Monica’s Step Up on Second apartments, a block from the tourist-friendly Third Street Promenade and close enough to the beach to feel the salt air.

“Look around. It’s here,” Rep. Timothy F. Murphy (R-Pa.) said during a recent visit, describing why he sees Step Up’s residential programs as a national model.

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