(Wall Street Journal) – While anxiety, depression and other mental-health conditions started to climb among children before Covid, they soared during the isolation and disruption of the pandemic. The increased demand for treatment exacerbated a shortage of available mental-health services. This has left desperate families pouring into emergency departments that legally can turn no one away. 

“We’re the place of last resort to mop up after the system has failed,” said Lucas. The influx of young mental-health patients is overcrowding emergency departments and delaying treatment across the country at both specialized children’s hospitals and general hospitals. (Read More)