Health Affairs Pathways Podcast: The History of Mental Health Policy

The Community Mental Health Act of 1963 promised to shift in-patient mental healthcare from state-run institutions to local care centers with an emphasis on rehabilitations. However, the process of deinstitutionalization was fraught with logistical issues, as establishing a nationwide community care infrastructure was slower than the reduction in beds in state mental institutions. In the latest Health Affairs Pathways Podcast, hosts Sania Ali and Avni Kulkarni look back at the process of deinstitutionalization and how it plays into the current mental health boarding crisis.

According to Health Affairs, “The featured guest on this episode is Andrew Sperling, former director of legislative advocacy from the National Alliance of Mental Illness and current senior director of government affairs at Intra-Cellular Therapies.”

Click here to listen.

(Source: Health Affairs Pathways, March 23^rd, 2022)