Behavioral Health Policy & News

Jessi Pettigrew, MSW, LCSW, PhD candidate at the Graduate School of Social Work at Colorado State University explains why sleep health is a social justice issue. She says social workers should be concerned about sleep health, even if they aren’t working in a clinical setting.

Deborah M. Figart, PhD, and Ellen Mutari, PhD, are the co-authors of "Economic Well-Being: An Introduction" from NASW Press. In this groundbreaking book, Figart and Mutari make the study of economic life accessible, applicable, and exciting.

The opioid crisis is considered a public health emergency, with 136 deaths per day and climbing. Last year,107,000 people died from opioid overdose. Opioids are a factor in 83 percent of overdose deaths.

As the toll of COVID-19 and widespread economic anxieties becomes increasingly clear, the demand for mental health services has been intensifying.

The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline number became 988 on July 16, 2022, to make help-seeking in a moment of crisis more accessible.

Experts have expressed concern that the Lifeline is already struggling to meet demand, due to the increase in youth suicide rates during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Syringe access services are often the entry point for further treatment, and one of the best tools we have to end the overdose crisis, writes NASW-New Jersey Executive Director Jennifer Thompson.