Budget cuts threaten a fragile mental health system.

The article reports that fifteen per cent of people with bipolar disorder, and 10 per cent of people with schizophrenia, commit suicide in the U.S. Mental illness is the second leading cause of death among teens and young adults. Without access to needed services, adults and children with mental illnesses face increased risk of school failure, unemployment, substance abuse, homelessness, arrest, incarceration, emergency room visits and suicide. This increases the burden on hospital emergency rooms, the New Hampshire Hospital, courts, prisons and jails, schools, welfare and shelters.