By Jessica Reichart Mental illness can and will affect almost everybody in their lifetime. Whether you struggle with it yourself, or you have a friend or relative that deals with one, it’s everywhere. Although mental illnesses are so prominent, many go untreated. This may seem odd since it’s something that drastically affects over 42.5 million people in America alone, according to NewsWeek.com. NewsWeek also states that forty percent of our friends, family, and neighbors do not receive any treatment for something that affects an abundance of people negatively. The Murphy’s Bill was created in order to help increase this awareness and the help that is received by patients. As time passes, there are always ways to improve the treatment of our people, especially those struggling to live happily. As our country grows and social media amplifies a single voice, mental illnesses such as depression, anxiety, and schizophrenia are becoming more prominent. As the people are becoming more aware, the help for these individuals should also increase. However, this does not seem to be the case. Within the Murphy Bill, it is stated that seventy years ago when the population was half of its current size, there were 60,000 inpatient care beds for people with mental illness. Now, after the population has doubled, there are around 40,000 beds. 40,000 people with help, 560,000 without. This does not take into account the millions of other people also deal with a mental illness that are not receiving help at all. The Murphy’s Bill plans to not only increase the number of beds available but also increase access to them for the most critical patients in our country. We come from a country drowning in debt, but tracking spending can help improve conditions, even if it is one state at a time. The Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act states that an average of 130 billion dollars is spent on mental illness annually. Tracking the spends and documenting the results of the spending will help to distribute funds to areas that really need the funds. This is planned to be fixed in Murphy’s Bill by using the Department of Health and Human Services to create programs to accumulate evidence to show the correlation between spending and success in people receiving the treatment they need. No one ever wants to be treated as a statistic, but at this time, the people we walk the halls with, share laughs with, and grow with are being treated that way. Thanks to Representative Tim Murphy from Pennsylvania’s 18th Congressional District, the Murphy’s Bill is one step closer to creating a more caring form of treatment for those with mental illness. This bill will battle through Congress until it wins, something we all with a mental disorder also dream of, in order to create a brighter future for ourselves and those around us.
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Elena Caputo
Hi! My name is Elena, and I'm a senior at Wilson and one of the Editors of the Editorial section. If you have any questions or ideas or if you want to write, email me at [email protected]! Olivia MonosHello! My name is Olivia and I'm a junior this year, and one of the editors of the Editorial section! I'm really excited to write for the Paw Print again this year!
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