Mental health ed coming in 2 states

WASHINGTON — Amid sharply rising rates of teen suicide and adolescent mental illness, two states have enacted laws that for the first time require public schools to include mental health education in their basic curriculum.

Most states require health education in all public schools, and laws have been enacted in many states to require health teachers to include lessons on tobacco, drugs and alcohol, cancer detection and safe sex.

Two states are going further: New York’s new law adds mental health instruction to the list in kindergarten through 12th grade; Virginia requires it in ninth and 10th grades.

Nationwide, cities and states have been adopting a variety of initiatives over the past decade to address the rising need for mental health care in schools.

But until this year, mandated mental health education had not been part of the trend.

“We’re seeing a huge increase in youth anxiety and depression,” said Dustin Verga, a high school health teacher in Clifton, New York, who was an early advocate for the state’s new law.

“We teach them how to detect the signs of cancer and how to avoid accidents, but we don’t teach them how to recognize the symptoms of mental illness,” Verga said. “… Mental health treatment is much more effective if the disease is caught early.”

A report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this month shows that the U.S. suicide rate rose by a quarter between 1999 and 2016.

That and the deaths of fashion designer Kate Spade and chef Anthony Bourdain — have raised the nation’s consciousness about depression and suicide prevention.

But mental illness can set in much earlier than adulthood. More than half of lifetime mental illnesses begin before age 14, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Yet the average person waits 10 years after the first symptoms occur before getting treatment.

Many states have increased funding for school counseling and added psychologists to their health staffs. Others are thinking of doing the same. Texas

Gov. Greg Abbott this month recommended adding more counselors to schools after a mass shooting at Santa Fe High. His is one of 20 states that don’t require school counselors.