A panel of medical experts on Tuesday recommended for the first time that doctors screen all adult patients under 65 for anxiety, guidance that highlights the extraordinary stress levels that have plagued the United States since the start of the pandemic.<\/p>\n
The advisory group, called the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, said the guidance was intended to help prevent mental health disorders from going undetected and untreated for years or even decades. It made a similar recommendation for children and teenagers earlier this year.
\nThe panel, appointed by an arm of the federal Department of Health and Human Services, has been preparing the guidance since before the pandemic. The recommendations come at a time of \u201ccritical need,\u201d said Lori Pbert, a clinical psychologist and professor at the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, who serves on the task force. Americans have been reporting outsize anxiety levels in response to a confluence of stressors, including inflation and crime rates, fear of illness and loss of loved ones from Covid-19.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a crisis in this country,\u201d Dr. Pbert said. \u201cOur only hope is that our recommendations throw a spotlight on the need to create greater access to mental health care \u2014 and urgently.\u201d<\/p>\n
Read it all<\/a>.<\/p>\n A panel of medical experts on Tuesday recommended for the first time that doctors screen all adult patients under 65 for anxiety, guidance that highlights the extraordinary stress levels that have plagued the U.S. since the start of the pandemic. https:\/\/t.co\/sm1gfwmanB<\/a><\/p>\n — The New York Times (@nytimes) September 20, 2022<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n \n