Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
Abbott blamed school shooting on lack of mental health resources. But he reportedly cut more than
$200 million from the department that handles them.
Business Insider via Yahoo News
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott blamed the Uvalde school shooting on mental health but cut close to [$200] million from the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, which oversees mental health services, CNN reported.
-snip-
Lori Post, director of the Buehler Center for Health Policy and Economics at the Northwestern University School of Medicine told NBC News that there's "no evidence the shooter is mentally ill, just angry and hateful."
"While it is understandable that most people cannot fathom slaughtering small children and want to attribute it to mental health, it is very rare for a mass shooter to have a diagnosed mental health condition," she told the outlet.
CNN's Pamela Brown reported that despite Abbott's assertion that the issue is tied to mental health, he's cut more than $117 million from the state's Health and Human Services Commission in 2021 to a little more than $93 million in 2022.
Across the two years, more than $200 million was cut from the departments funds to go towards supporting the National Guard and efforts on the border, per the outlet.
The governor's office did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment, but told CNN that Abbott has spent his time in office working with legislators to support mental health initiatives in the state.
Mental Health America, a non-profit tracking mental health resources across the country, however, ranked Texas 50 out of 51 territories for mental health access in 2021.
-snip-
Lori Post, director of the Buehler Center for Health Policy and Economics at the Northwestern University School of Medicine told NBC News that there's "no evidence the shooter is mentally ill, just angry and hateful."
"While it is understandable that most people cannot fathom slaughtering small children and want to attribute it to mental health, it is very rare for a mass shooter to have a diagnosed mental health condition," she told the outlet.
CNN's Pamela Brown reported that despite Abbott's assertion that the issue is tied to mental health, he's cut more than $117 million from the state's Health and Human Services Commission in 2021 to a little more than $93 million in 2022.
Across the two years, more than $200 million was cut from the departments funds to go towards supporting the National Guard and efforts on the border, per the outlet.
The governor's office did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment, but told CNN that Abbott has spent his time in office working with legislators to support mental health initiatives in the state.
Mental Health America, a non-profit tracking mental health resources across the country, however, ranked Texas 50 out of 51 territories for mental health access in 2021.
-snip-
4 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
= new reply since forum marked as read
