Stephan: And as long as we are talking about mothers and children let's also state this truth: Public school healthcare in the United States sucks; it may be the worst in the developed world. I could only find 2015-2016 figures before Trump took office, and Betsy DeVos became Secretary of Education, but I can state this definitively: the 2019-2020 figures, if they are ever released, are going to be even worse.
An overwhelming majority of schools in the U.S. lack nurses and counselors to help students in need, per a 2019 ACLU report from Education Department data on every school district.
Why it matters: Children are reporting just as much stress as adults, with one in three reporting that they are feeling depressed.
- Students are 21 times more likely to visit school-based health centers for mental health than community mental health centers.
- Especially in low-income districts where resources are scarce, these mental health providers at schools can be a district’s first line of defense.
