America the wealthiest country in the world
The US always prided itself on being financially powerful. Able to sufficiently care for and sustain its citizenry in medical mental, and social environments. It is what foreign countries envied and citizens took pride in. It was a time when it was expected of politicians to be for the people and by the people. However, there are opposing voices as to to what caring for the Mentally unstable. is And the consequences of those polar views have left many uncared. Consequently life has deteriorated for both the mentally ill and the American society.
In addition to committing mass shootings and bazaar acts, a high percentage of many mentally disturbed people are homeless. Further complicating solutions many go undiagnosed. Still others self medicate using drugs like Marijuana, Opioids and Hallucinogenics. Sending the problem to more extreme levels. While drug use may provide sedation, and in some cases relaxation, It is not a cure but rather an anesthetization of the anguish.
Yet other conditions once considered “Mentally ill” were declassified as such designations to relieve communities of the financial burden of caring for them.
How did we get here
1965 The U.S. Congress establishes Medicaid and Medicare. Mentally disabled people living in the community are eligible for benefits but those in psychiatric hospitals are excluded. By encouraging patients to be discharged, state legislators could shift the cost of care for mentally ill patients to the federal government.
Coinciding with a movement during the 1970s for rehabilitation of people with severe mental illnesses, the Mental Health Systems Act supported and financed community mental health support systems, which coordinated general health care, mental health care, and social support services.[2] The law followed the 1978 Report of the President’s Commission on Mental Health, which made recommendations for improving mental health care in the United States. While some concerns existed about the methodology followed by the President’s Committee, the report served as the foundation for the MHSA, which in turn was seen as landmark legislation in U.S. mental health policy.
The Mental Health Systems Act of 1980 (MHSA) was United States legislation signed by President Jimmy Carter which provided grants to community mental health centers. In 1981 President Ronald Reagan, who had made major efforts during his Governorship to reduce funding and enlistment for California mental institutions, pushed a political effort through the U.S. Congress to repeal most of MHSA.[1] The MHSA was considered landmark legislation in mental health care policy.
Where are we now
2015 In the San Francisco Homeless Count, 55 percent of people experiencing chronic homelessness report they have emotional or psychiatric conditions.
A severe shortage of inpatient care for people with mental illness is amounting to a public health crisis, as the number of individuals struggling with a range of psychiatric problems continues to rise.
According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), 6.3 percent of the population suffers from severe mental illness [2], defined as longstanding mental illnesses, typically psychosis, that cause moderate-to-severe disability of prolonged duration [3]. 
Given that the number of adults 18 and over in the United States in 2010 was estimated to be roughly 234,564,000 [4], approximately 14.8 million people have severe mental illness. Experts polled by the Treatment Advocacy Center estimated that about 50 beds per 100,000 people would meet needs for acute and long-term care, but in some states the number of available beds is as low as 5 per 100,000 people [5]. Thus, many who need residential treatment cannot obtain it.
The changes that led to this lack of space, as well as changes to the institutionalization process, have made it impossible for people with severe mental illness to find appropriate care and shelter, resulting in homelessness or “housing” in the criminal justice system’s jails and prisons [6]. The percentage of people with severe mental illness in prisons and jails is generally estimated to be 16 percent of the total population [6]. Given that the population in U.S. prisons and jails totaled 2,361,123 in 2010 [7], it would appear that nearly 378,000 incarcerated persons have severe mental illness [7].
How do we fix this
State hospitals must return to their traditional role of the hospital of last resort. They must function as entry points to the mental health system for most people with severe mental illness who otherwise will wind up in a jail or prison. State hospitals are also necessary for involuntary commitment. As a nation, we are working through a series of tragedies involving weapons in the hands of people with severe mental illness—in Colorado, where James Holmes killed or wounded 70 people, Arizona, where Jared Loughner killed or wounded 19 people, and Connecticut, where Adam Lanza killed 28 including children as young as 6 years old
. All are thought to have had severe mental illness at the time of their crimes.
After we finish the debate about the availability of guns, particularly to those with mental illness, we will certainly have to address the mental health system and lack of services, especially for those in need of treatment but unwilling or unable to seek it. With proper services, including involuntary commitment, many who have the potential for violence can be treated. Just where will those services be initiated, and what will be needed?
Affirmative Action for the Wealthy
