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Sisolak, Lee warn Nevada not isolated from assaults on abortion rights
In post-Roe v. Wade America, states and the federal government are left to navigate the legal ramifications of the Supreme Court overturning a 50-year legal precedent. As reproductive health centers, medical professionals, and legislatures that support abortion rights cope with the uncertainty, Republicans and motivated anti-abortion rights activists are pushing for a national ban. Nevada […]
Anti-abortion centers: Unregulated, misleading, and close as possible to abortion clinics
Editor’s note: Destinee G., a source mentioned in this article, asked only her last initial be used out of concern for professional and personal retaliation for sharing her experience. Destinee G.’s period was late in February 2021. It wasn’t that abnormal. Until that year her menstrual cycle was irregular. But by the next month, she […]
Pills, powders laced with fentanyl cause increased deaths by overdose among Southern Nevada youth
Overdose deaths from people under 25 years old doubled from 2019 to 2020 in Clark County. Those numbers continue to climb in 2021, according to preliminary data from Southern Nevada Health District (SNHD). The increase in deaths are associated with counterfeit pills like M30, a prescription opioid, or Adderall and powders like cocaine, but most […]
Butterflies are free – from protection in Nevada
A bill draft authorizing the Nevada Department of Wildlife to protect monarch butterflies, bees and other terrestrial invertebrates advanced from the Nevada Legislative Joint Interim Standing Committee on Natural Resources, yesterday. While the Nevada Department of Agriculture has authority over insects that are considered pests, no agency has authority over non-pests like butterflies, bees, snails, […]
UNLV study traces links between unaffordable housing and child mistreatment
A single mother in Nevada makes $10.50 per hour on minimum wage, or about $21,840.00 a year if she works full time. And then there’s the rent. The average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Las Vegas is by one estimate $1,372, and for a two-bedroom, $1,622 – $16,464 or $19,464 annually. Even at hourly […]
Legislative panel preps mental health bills for 2023 session
State lawmakers Thursday signed off on several behavioral and mental health initiatives they want to see prepped as legislation for next year’s legislative session. The bill draft requests (BDRs) include a proposal to require health care providers who are authorized to diagnose an opioid use disorder to offer information on evidence-based treatment options, and better […]
A month into 988, call volumes up, but state behavioral health infrastructure isn’t
A month ago, on July 16, the nation and Nevada launched 988, the new three-digit number for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, connecting people in emotional distress to 24-hour, 7-day-a-week free and confidential support. It was step one in creating the nation’s first comprehensive crisis behavioral health care system based on having someone to call, […]
Guideline is 1 social worker for every 250 students. NV schools have 1 for every 8,730.
As the first week of school comes to a close with a shortage of nearly 3,000 teachers in the state, Nevada faces another staffing shortage in its education system — mental health professionals. The state would need 35 times as many school social workers, 3.7 times as many school psychologists and twice as many school […]
Substance abuse conference focuses on state’s increased fentanyl overdose rates
Community experts discussed the impact of fentanyl on Nevada’s opioid epidemic at the third annual Southern Nevada Substance Misuse and Overdose Prevention Summit Wednesday. The conference hopes to break down silos between key providers and implement best practices for budding health concerns in the community. “It’s so important that we both learn from other agencies […]
Racist practices in health care can cause medical trauma, PTSD
Note: This story mentions suicide. As of July 16, 9-8-8 is the new, nationwide three-digit hotline phone number for Americans to call when they or someone they love are in crisis and need to be connected with suicide prevention and mental health crisis counselors. Glahnnia Rates was a thriving 32-year-old public health professional last autumn. […]
Grant helps state launch rural mental health pilot program
The Nevada Department of Health and Human Services launched a new virtual mental and behavioral health pilot program Wednesday with 11 law enforcement agencies in the state through a $3.8 million grant from the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust. There are 3.1 million people across Nevada spread over 110,567 square miles, which […]
Nevada building behavioral health infrastructure, starting with new 988 hotline
Nevada, which continues to rank at the bottom of all states in access to care and high prevalence of mental illness, faces an uphill battle in creating a comprehensive crisis care system that will accompany the new 988 mental health line. The deadline is in six weeks. Congress passed the National Suicide Hotline Designation Act […]