Federal News & Issues

WASHINGTON, D.C., June 16, 2020 – Research out today identifies traits among high-risk adolescents associated with increased risk for gun use. Among high-risk adolescents, those with greater callous-unemotional traits were more likely to carry a gun and to use a gun during a crime over a four-year period following an initial arrest, according to a study published online in the American Journal of Psychiatry.

Callous-unemotional traits refer to individuals with limited guilt, reduced empathy, reduced displays of appropriate emotion, and a lack of concern over performance in important activities. An estimated 25% - 30% of adolescents with serious conduct problems have callous-unemotional traits and they have more persistent and severe aggression and worse treatment outcomes than adolescents without callous-unemotional traits....

WASHINGTON, D.C., June 4, 2020 – The American Psychiatric Association (APA) today issued guidance on the admittance and release of psychiatric patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. The guidance is in response to efforts to either deny admittance to or prematurely release psychiatric patients under the guise of avoiding COVID-19 infection.

“It is simply irresponsible to prematurely release patients with serious mental illness from psychiatric inpatient settings into communities ill-prepared to treat them,” said APA President Jeffrey Geller, M.D., M.P.H. “Every patient should be in an environment where they receive treatment, care and supervision appropriate to their needs. Inpatient psychiatric units and hospitals are not hotbeds of COVID-19 infection, and in many instances are the safest alternative in the community.”